2000
#125,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Nagase
A surname meaning "long valley" in Japanese.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Nagase. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nagase 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Nagase in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nagase, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.1%) and White (6.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nagase
The surname Nagase is of Japanese origin, with roots dating back to the 8th century during the Nara period. It is believed to have originated from the Nagase district, a mountainous region in what is now Wakayama Prefecture on the island of Honshu. The name itself is derived from the Japanese words "naga," meaning long, and "se," meaning a narrow valley or ravine, referring to the geographic features of the area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Nagase name can be found in the Shoku Nihongi, an imperial chronicle completed in 797 AD, which mentions a family of that name residing in the Nagase region. This suggests that the surname was already well-established by the late 8th century.
In the 12th century, during the Kamakura period, a prominent member of the Nagase clan, Nagase Masatsune (1134-1205), served as a samurai warrior under the famous shogun Minamoto no Yoritomo. Masatsune's exploits and loyalty to the Minamoto clan are recorded in several historical texts from that era.
Another notable figure bearing the Nagase name was Nagase Tomoyasu (1616-1693), a skilled swordsmith who lived during the Edo period. His works, particularly his katana blades, are highly regarded and can be found in various museums and collections around Japan.
In the 19th century, Nagase Kameji (1837-1903) was a successful businessman and entrepreneur who founded the Nagase Trading Company, one of Japan's oldest and most respected trading houses. The company, which still operates today, played a significant role in the country's economic development during the Meiji era.
During the early 20th century, Nagase Takashi (1903-1988) was a renowned artist and printmaker, known for his intricate woodblock prints depicting traditional Japanese landscapes and scenes. His works have been exhibited in galleries and museums worldwide and are highly sought after by collectors.
Throughout its long history, the Nagase surname has been associated with various regions and place names within Japan, including the aforementioned Nagase district in Wakayama, as well as Nagase-mura (Nagase village) in Shizuoka Prefecture, and Nagase-cho (Nagase town) in Kagoshima Prefecture, among others.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nagase
Among Census respondents with the surname Nagase, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.1%) and White (6.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Nagase 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 Nagase surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander77.8% · 91
- Two or more races11.1% · 13
- White6.8% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nagase
Nagase 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
#123,796
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 139
+13 bearers (+10.3%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Up 1,843 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-22 bearers (-15.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 20,474 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #125,639 | 126 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #123,796 | 139 | 0.05 | +13 bearers (+10.3%) | Up 1,843 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | -22 bearers (-15.8%) | Down 20,474 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 Nagase 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 | #123,796 | #144,270 | -16.5% |
| Count | 139 | 117 | -15.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -21.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nagase bearers went from 139 to 117 (-15.8% change). The surname moved down 20,474 positions in the national ranking, going from #123,796 to #144,270.
FAQ
Nagase surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nagase?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Nagase. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Nagase?
Nagase ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Nagase. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Nagase.
Has Nagase become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nagase went from 139 recorded bearers to 117. That is a decrease of 22 (-15.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #123,796 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Nagase?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nagase, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (11.1%) and White (6.8%). 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 Nagase in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.8% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nagase appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (77.8%), Two or More Races (11.1%), White (6.8%). 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 Nagase (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 Nagase mean?
A surname meaning "long valley" in Japanese. 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 Nagase (0.04 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 Nagase?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Nagase, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.