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

Men, 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 Men surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Men in America

Men is the 21092nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Men surname appeared 1,245 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 Men.

We can also compare 2010 data for Men 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 Men

The surname MEN originated from the Chinese region and can be traced back to the 5th century AD. It is derived from the Chinese word "men" which means "door" or "gate". The earliest recorded instances of this surname were found in ancient Chinese census records and manuscripts.

The name is believed to have first appeared in the Shandong province of eastern China, where it was commonly used to refer to families who lived near or guarded the gates of towns and cities. During the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD), the surname became more widespread and started appearing in other parts of China as well.

One of the earliest known bearers of the MEN surname was Men Xun, a poet and calligrapher who lived from 714 to 784 AD during the Tang Dynasty. He was renowned for his exceptional calligraphic skills and his works are still widely studied and revered today.

Another notable figure with the MEN surname was Men Shengzhai, a Chinese military general who lived during the late Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). He played a crucial role in the defense of Shandong province against the invading Manchu forces in the early 17th century.

In the 13th century, the MEN surname was also found in the ancient Chinese text "Zaju" or "Variety Plays", which were a form of operatic drama popular during the Yuan Dynasty (1271-1368). One of the characters in these plays was named Men Zijian, a wealthy merchant from the city of Hangzhou.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), the MEN surname spread to other parts of China, including the provinces of Guangdong and Fujian, as people migrated and settled in new areas. One notable bearer of the name from this period was Men Xizhong, a renowned scholar and poet who lived from 1719 to 1797.

In the 19th century, the MEN surname was also found in the Chinese diaspora communities around the world, as many Chinese immigrants settled in countries like Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. One famous individual with this surname was Men Pho, a Chinese-Malaysian entrepreneur and philanthropist who lived from 1837 to 1909 and made significant contributions to the development of Kuala Lumpur.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Men

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

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

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

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