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

Maekawa, 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 Maekawa surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Maekawa in America

Maekawa is the 73464th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Maekawa surname appeared 264 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 Maekawa.

We can also compare 2010 data for Maekawa 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 Maekawa

The surname Maekawa is of Japanese origin, originating from the Edo period (1603-1868). It is a habitational name derived from the place name "Maekawa," which means "front river" or "before the river" in Japanese. The name likely originated in a region near a river or stream, possibly in the Kanto or Chubu regions of Japan.

The earliest recorded instances of the Maekawa name can be traced back to the late 16th century in various historical records and documents from the Edo period. Some of the earliest known individuals with the surname include Maekawa Hiroshi (1570-1632), a samurai and retainer of the Tokugawa clan, and Maekawa Toshitsune (1592-1657), a renowned Buddhist monk and scholar.

During the Edo period, the Maekawa family was known to have strong ties to the samurai class and the Buddhist monastic community. Several members of the family held influential positions in various domains and participated in notable historical events of the time.

One prominent figure in the history of the Maekawa name was Maekawa Bungo (1768-1834), a renowned poet and calligrapher who served as a court attendant during the Edo period. His works and contributions to the literary arts of the time are still celebrated today.

Another notable individual was Maekawa Yasushi (1828-1889), a statesman and diplomat who played a crucial role in the Meiji Restoration and the modernization of Japan in the late 19th century. He served as the first Japanese ambassador to the United States and was instrumental in establishing diplomatic relations between the two nations.

In the 20th century, Maekawa Kunio (1905-1986) gained prominence as a renowned architect and designer. He was influential in the development of modern Japanese architecture and is particularly known for his innovative residential designs that blended traditional Japanese elements with modern aesthetics.

The Maekawa name has also been associated with various place names and locations throughout Japan, such as Maekawa-cho in Shizuoka Prefecture and Maekawa-mura in Gifu Prefecture, which may have been the original birthplaces or settlements of certain branches of the Maekawa family.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Maekawa

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

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

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

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