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

Nagashima, 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 Nagashima surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nagashima in America

Nagashima is the 66371st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nagashima surname appeared 298 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 Nagashima.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nagashima 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 Nagashima

The surname Nagashima is of Japanese origin and derives from the Japanese words "naga" meaning long and "shima" meaning island or strip of land. It likely originated as a name given to families who lived on a long, narrow island or strip of land.

Records show the name dates back to at least the 12th century in Japan. One of the earliest recorded references is in the Heike Monogatari, a collection of stories about the Genpei War from 1180-1185, where a Nagashima Noritsuna is mentioned as a supporter of the Taira clan.

In the Kamakura period (1185-1333), there are records of a Nagashima family serving as samurai retainers to the Hojo clan, who ruled as shoguns during this era. The Nagashimas may have taken their name from an island or strip of land they controlled near modern-day Kamakura.

During the Muromachi period (1336-1573), a Buddhist monk named Nagashima Kannon is noted for establishing a temple near Kyoto in the late 15th century. This temple still stands today under a different name.

The name appears in several regional records from the Edo period (1603-1868), suggesting Nagashima families settled in various parts of Japan. One prominent Nagashima was Nagashima Okishin (1603-1688), a magistrate and administrator in Nagasaki who played a role in Japan's foreign relations.

In more recent centuries, notable people with the surname include Nagashima Naomasa (1835-1888), a samurai who aided the imperial cause in the Boshin War, and Nagashima Hiroaki (1875-1964), a politician who served as Education Minister in the 1920s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nagashima

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

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

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

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