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

Nakajima, 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 Nakajima surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nakajima in America

Nakajima is the 32396th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nakajima surname appeared 710 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 Nakajima.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nakajima 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 Nakajima

The surname Nakajima originated in Japan and is believed to have emerged during the Kamakura period (1185-1333 CE). It is a combination of two Japanese words: "naka," meaning "middle" or "center," and "jima," meaning "island." This suggests that the name may have originated from a family or clan residing on an island located in the middle of a larger landmass or body of water.

One of the earliest known references to the Nakajima name can be found in the Azuma Kagami, a historical chronicle of the Kamakura shogunate compiled in the late 13th century. The chronicle mentions a samurai named Nakajima Hidesada, who served under the renowned warrior Minamoto no Yoritomo during the Genpei War (1180-1185 CE).

During the Muromachi period (1336-1573 CE), the Nakajima clan emerged as a prominent family in the Shinshu region (present-day Nagano Prefecture). Historical records from this era mention Nakajima Nobumoto, a skilled swordsman and military strategist who played a key role in the battles against the Takeda clan.

In the Edo period (1603-1868 CE), the Nakajima family produced several notable scholars and artists. One of the most renowned was Nakajima Atsushi (1909-1942), a renowned poet and literary critic who was part of the influential Shinkankakuha literary movement. His works explored themes of loneliness, existentialism, and the human condition.

Another notable figure was Nakajima Ki (1796-1871), a celebrated painter and printmaker from the late Edo period. He was known for his intricate woodblock prints depicting landscapes and scenes from daily life, which exemplified the ukiyo-e art style.

In more recent history, Nakajima Chiyoko (1925-2005) was a pioneering Japanese physicist and academic. She made significant contributions to the field of nuclear physics and was the first woman to be appointed as a professor at the University of Tokyo's Faculty of Science.

Nakajima is also a prominent surname in the world of sports. Nakajima Hiroshi (1932-2016) was a legendary baseball player and manager who played for the Yomiuri Giants and later managed the Japanese national baseball team. He was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nakajima

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!