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

Kwei, 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 Kwei surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kwei in America

Kwei is the 113791st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kwei surname appeared 154 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 Kwei.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kwei 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 Kwei

The surname "KWEI" has its origins in China, with the earliest recorded examples dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Mandarin Chinese word "kuài," which means "swift" or "quick." This suggests that the name may have originally been associated with someone who was known for their speed or agility.

In ancient Chinese records, the name "KWEI" appears in various forms, including "Kuai," "Khuai," and "Kwai." These variations likely emerged due to the differences in regional dialects and the romanization systems used to transliterate Chinese characters into the Latin alphabet.

One of the earliest known references to the name "KWEI" can be found in the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) court records, where a scholar named Kwei Zhongxian (1508-1589) was documented for his contributions to the study of Confucian classics.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), the name "KWEI" gained prominence with the rise of the Kwei family, a prominent clan based in Guangdong Province. One notable member of this family was Kwei Liangyu (1763-1828), a renowned scholar and poet who served as a high-ranking official in the imperial court.

Another significant figure with the surname "KWEI" was Kwei Xing (1923-2008), a renowned Chinese mathematician and educator. He made groundbreaking contributions to the field of partial differential equations and was widely recognized for his work in mathematical analysis.

In the realm of literature, the name "KWEI" is associated with the writer Kwei Pao (1911-1978), who was born in Zhejiang Province. He was known for his novels and short stories that explored themes of social and political change in 20th-century China.

Kwei Quon (1910-2003), a Chinese-American artist and educator, was also a notable bearer of the surname "KWEI." He was renowned for his watercolor paintings and his efforts in promoting Chinese art and culture in the United States.

It is worth noting that while the surname "KWEI" has its roots in China, it has also been adopted by individuals of Chinese descent living in various parts of the world, including Southeast Asia, North America, and Europe.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kwei

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

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 Kwei 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 Kwei 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 Kwei was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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