2000
#37,319
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 562
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.21
Very Rare Last name
Myung
A Korean surname originally meaning "bright" or "luminous."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 815 Americans carry the last name Myung. That puts it at #34,347 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 420,557 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Myung 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.
Bearers in the US
815
1 in 420,557
Census rank
#34,347
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
711
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 711 bearers of the surname Myung in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 34347th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Myung, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Myung
The surname MYUNG originates from Korea and is a romanized form of the Korean name 명 (Myeong). This name has its roots in the ancient Korean kingdom of Silla, which existed from the 1st century BCE to the 10th century CE.
MYUNG is derived from the Korean word "myeong," which means "bright" or "brilliant." It was often used to describe people with exceptional intelligence, talent, or accomplishments. The earliest known records of this surname date back to the 7th century CE, when it appears in the Samguk Sagi, a historical record of the Three Kingdoms of Korea.
One of the earliest notable figures with the surname MYUNG was Myung Ki, a renowned scholar and poet who lived during the Goryeo Dynasty (918-1392 CE). His works were widely celebrated and contributed significantly to the development of Korean literature.
During the Joseon Dynasty (1392-1897 CE), the MYUNG surname was particularly prominent among the scholarly elite. Myung Yeong-ryang (1459-1501 CE) was a prominent neo-Confucian scholar and writer who served as a royal advisor and played a significant role in the development of Korean philosophy and literature.
Another notable figure was Myung Seung-hun (1501-1572 CE), a military leader and strategist who played a crucial role in defending Korea against Japanese invasions in the late 16th century. His tactical prowess and bravery earned him a place in Korean history as a national hero.
In the 19th century, Myung Wol-yeong (1819-1888 CE) was a prominent scholar and diplomat who served as the Korean ambassador to China. He was instrumental in negotiating treaties and fostering diplomatic relations between the two countries.
More recently, Myung Jae-kwon (1901-1965 CE) was a renowned Korean independence activist who fought against Japanese colonial rule in the early 20th century. He played a pivotal role in the Korean independence movement and later became a prominent politician in the newly established Republic of Korea.
The MYUNG surname continues to be widely used in Korea today, and many notable figures from various fields, including politics, business, and academia, bear this historic name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Myung
Among Census respondents with the surname Myung, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Myung 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 Myung surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander91.4% · 650
- Two or more races4.8% · 34
- White2.8% · 20
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 6
- Black or African American0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Myung
Myung 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
#31,994
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 721
+159 bearers (+28.3%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Up 5,325 places
2020
#34,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 711
-10 bearers (-1.4%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Down 2,353 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #37,319 | 562 | 0.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #31,994 | 721 | 0.24 | +159 bearers (+28.3%) | Up 5,325 places |
| 2020 | #34,347 | 711 | 0.24 | -10 bearers (-1.4%) | Down 2,353 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 Myung 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 | #31,994 | #34,347 | -7.4% |
| Count | 721 | 711 | -1.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.24 | 0.24 | -0.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Myung bearers went from 721 to 711 (-1.4% change). The surname moved down 2,353 positions in the national ranking, going from #31,994 to #34,347.
FAQ
Myung surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Myung?
Name Census estimates that about 815 living Americans carry the surname Myung. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 420,557 residents.
How common is Myung?
Myung ranks #34,347 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.24 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 711 people with the surname Myung. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (815), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.24 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Myung.
Has Myung become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Myung went from 721 recorded bearers to 711. That is a decrease of 10 (-1.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #31,994 to #34,347.
What does the Census say about the background of Myung?
Among Census respondents with the surname Myung, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (2.8%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Myung in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (650 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Myung appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (91.4%), Two or More Races (4.8%), White (2.8%). 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 Myung (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 Myung mean?
A Korean surname originally meaning "bright" or "luminous." 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 Myung (0.24 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 Americans have the surname Myung?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.