Find out how popular the last name Kuroki is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kuroki.

Kuroki, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kuroki surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kuroki in America

Kuroki is the 109758th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kuroki surname appeared 161 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kuroki.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kuroki to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kuroki

The surname Kuroki is of Japanese origin, dating back to the feudal era in Japan. It is believed to have originated from the combination of two Japanese words, "kuro" meaning black, and "ki" meaning tree or wood, possibly referring to a person living near or working with dark-colored trees or timber.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Kuroki name can be found in the Kamakura period (1185-1333 AD), when samurai warriors bore this name. During this time, family names were often derived from geographical locations, occupations, or physical characteristics, and Kuroki likely followed this tradition.

In the Edo period (1603-1868 AD), the Kuroki family was prominent in the Satsuma Domain (present-day Kagoshima Prefecture), where they served as samurai retainers to the Shimazu clan. Notable figures from this era include Kuroki Kiyotaka (1617-1684), a renowned military strategist and advisor to the Shimazu daimyo.

As Japan entered the modern era, the Kuroki name gained national recognition with the exploits of General Kuroki Tamemoto (1844-1923), a distinguished military commander who led the Second Army during the Russo-Japanese War (1904-1905). His decisive victory at the Battle of Shaho is considered one of the greatest triumphs in Japanese military history.

Another prominent figure was Kuroki Masao (1891-1944), a politician and diplomat who served as the Japanese ambassador to Italy during World War II. He played a crucial role in negotiating the terms of Italy's surrender to the Allied forces in 1943.

In the realm of literature, Kuroki Kazuo (1936-2015) was a celebrated novelist and essayist, known for his introspective works exploring themes of identity, memory, and the human condition. His novel "Passion" (1986) was a critical success and won several prestigious literary awards in Japan.

Throughout its history, the Kuroki name has been associated with various professions, from warriors and politicians to writers and artists, reflecting the diverse contributions of those who bore this surname to Japanese society and culture.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kuroki

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kuroki.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kuroki was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kuroki has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kuroki was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kuroki, please contact us.

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