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

Kwon, 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 Kwon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kwon in America

Kwon is the 2721st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kwon surname appeared 13,235 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Kwon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kwon 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 Kwon

The surname KWON originated from Korea, where it has been in use since ancient times. It is a Korean family name derived from the word "kwon," which means "leader" or "authority" in the Korean language.

The KWON surname is particularly prevalent in the regions of Gyeongsang and Jeolla, located in the southern part of the Korean peninsula. It is believed to have been adopted by clans and families associated with leadership roles or positions of authority within their respective communities.

Historically, the KWON surname can be traced back to the Three Kingdoms period (57 BC - 935 AD) in Korean history. Several notable figures bearing the KWON surname emerged during this era, including Kwon Yu, a revered scholar and philosopher who lived during the Silla Kingdom (57 BC - 935 AD).

In the Goryeo Dynasty (918 - 1392 AD), the KWON surname gained further prominence, with Kwon Kun (1090 - 1155), a renowned Confucian scholar and statesman, being one of the most influential figures of that time.

During the Joseon Dynasty (1392 - 1897), the KWON surname continued to be associated with scholarly and official ranks. Kwon Geun (1352 - 1408), a prominent Neo-Confucian scholar and diplomat, and Kwon Sang-hon (1567 - 1624), a respected scholar and writer, were both notable figures from this period.

The KWON surname has also been associated with various place names in Korea, such as Kwon-ri, a village in Gyeongsang Province, and Kwon-dong, a neighborhood in Seoul.

Some other notable individuals with the KWON surname throughout history include Kwon Oh-hyun (1942 - 2022), a South Korean businessman and former CEO of Samsung Electronics, and Kwon Ri Se (born 1972), a North Korean politician and diplomat.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kwon

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

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

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

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