2000
#7,724
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,970
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.47
Rare Last name
Mustafa
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "the chosen one" or "the preferred one."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,813 Americans carry the last name Mustafa. That puts it at #4,476 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.57 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,892 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mustafa surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mustafa with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.8K
1 in 38,892
Census rank
#4,476
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,685 bearers of the surname Mustafa in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.57 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4476th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mustafa, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%) and Black (15.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mustafa
The surname "Mustafa" is derived from the Arabic word "Mustafa", which means "the chosen one". It is a name of Turkish and Islamic origin, tracing its roots back to the 7th century AD.
The name is believed to have originated from the Prophet Muhammad's honorific title, "Al-Mustafa", which was used to refer to him as the "chosen one" or the "elect" of God. It was later adopted as a surname by those who revered the Prophet and sought to honor him.
In the early centuries of Islam, the name "Mustafa" was primarily used as a given name or a title, rather than a surname. The transition to its use as a hereditary surname likely occurred during the Ottoman Empire's reign, particularly in regions with a strong Islamic influence, such as present-day Turkey, the Balkans, and parts of the Middle East.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "Mustafa" can be found in the 14th century, with the birth of Mustafa Chelebi, the son of the Ottoman Sultan Bayezid I (1360-1403). Chelebi was a prominent figure in the Ottoman Empire and played a significant role in the succession struggles following his father's death.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Mustafa Kemal Atatürk (1881-1938), the founder and first President of the Republic of Turkey. Atatürk was a revolutionary leader who spearheaded the modernization and secularization of Turkey in the early 20th century.
Other historical figures with the surname "Mustafa" include:
1. Mustafa Reşid Pasha (1800-1858), an influential Ottoman statesman and reformer.
2. Mustafa Barzani (1903-1979), a Kurdish nationalist leader and the founder of the Kurdistan Democratic Party.
3. Mustafa Khalil (1920-2007), an Egyptian politician and the 44th Prime Minister of Egypt.
4. Mustafa Kamal (1874-1949), an Indian writer and activist, known for his contributions to the Bengali literary renaissance.
5. Mustafa Zahir (1897-1952), the last King of Afghanistan, who ruled from 1933 to 1973.
The surname "Mustafa" has also been associated with various place names and locations throughout history, particularly in regions with a strong Islamic and Ottoman influence. Examples include Mustafakemalpaşa, a district in Turkey named after Mustafa Kemal Atatürk, and Mustafapaşa, a former town in present-day Bulgaria.
While the surname "Mustafa" has its roots in the Islamic and Ottoman traditions, it has transcended cultural and geographical boundaries, with bearers of the name found in various parts of the world today.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mustafa
Among Census respondents with the surname Mustafa, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%) and Black (15.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mustafa bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Mustafa surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.5% · 4,032
- Asian and Pacific Islander21.7% · 1,670
- Black or African American15.2% · 1,169
- Hispanic or Latino5.7% · 438
- Two or more races4.7% · 361
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mustafa
Mustafa appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#5,875
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,873
+1,903 bearers (+47.9%)
Per 100,000 1.99
Rank movement Up 1,849 places
2020
#4,476
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,685
+1,812 bearers (+30.9%)
Per 100,000 2.57
Rank movement Up 1,399 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,724 | 3,970 | 1.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,875 | 5,873 | 1.99 | +1,903 bearers (+47.9%) | Up 1,849 places |
| 2020 | #4,476 | 7,685 | 2.57 | +1,812 bearers (+30.9%) | Up 1,399 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Mustafa surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #5,875 | #4,476 | 23.8% |
| Count | 5,873 | 7,685 | 30.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.99 | 2.57 | 29.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mustafa bearers went from 5,873 to 7,685 (+30.9% change). The surname moved up 1,399 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,875 to #4,476.
FAQ
Mustafa surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mustafa?
Name Census estimates that about 8,813 living Americans carry the surname Mustafa. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,892 residents.
How common is Mustafa?
Mustafa ranks #4,476 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.57 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,685 people with the surname Mustafa. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,813), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.57 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.57 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Mustafa.
Has Mustafa become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mustafa went from 5,873 recorded bearers to 7,685. That is an increase of 1,812 (+30.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,875 to #4,476.
What does the Census say about the background of Mustafa?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mustafa, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%) and Black (15.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Mustafa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.5% (4,032 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mustafa appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (52.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (21.7%), Black (15.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Mustafa (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Mustafa mean?
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "the chosen one" or "the preferred one." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Mustafa (2.57 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Mustafa?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Mustafa at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.