2000
#45,308
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 445
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.16
Rare Last name
Narasimhan
A Tamil surname derived from the name of the Hindu god Narasimha, the man-lion avatar of Vishnu.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,197 Americans carry the last name Narasimhan. That puts it at #24,912 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.35 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 286,344 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Narasimhan 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
1.2K
1 in 286,344
Census rank
#24,912
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,044 bearers of the surname Narasimhan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.35 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 24912th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Narasimhan, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Narasimhan
The surname Narasimhan is of Indian origin, specifically from the Tamil-speaking regions of southern India. It is a Brahmin name derived from the Sanskrit words "Nara" meaning man or human, and "Simha" meaning lion. Together, Narasimhan refers to the half-man, half-lion avatar of the Hindu god Vishnu.
The earliest known references to the name Narasimhan can be traced back to ancient Hindu scriptures and texts such as the Puranas and the Mahabharata, where the Narasimha avatar is described in detail. However, the use of Narasimhan as a surname likely originated much later, around the 8th or 9th century CE, during the Chola dynasty in Tamil Nadu.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Narasimhan was Narasimhan Nambi, a renowned Tamil scholar and poet who lived in the 9th century CE. He is credited with writing several works on Tamil grammar and literature, including the famous "Nannul" text.
Another notable figure from history was Narasimhan Iyer, a 16th-century Sanskrit scholar and commentator from the Vijayanagar Empire. His commentaries on ancient Hindu texts, such as the Vedas and the Upanishads, were widely influential during his time.
In the 18th century, Narasimhan Sastri was a prominent mathematician and astronomer from the Thanjavur Maratha kingdom. He made significant contributions to the fields of trigonometry and calculus and authored several works on mathematics and astronomy.
During the 20th century, Narasimhan Srinivasan was a renowned Indian mathematician and professor at the Tata Institute of Fundamental Research in Mumbai. He made groundbreaking contributions to the field of algebraic geometry and was awarded the prestigious Padma Bhushan by the Indian government in 1975.
Another notable figure was Narasimhan Varadachari, a highly respected Indian diplomat and statesman who served as the Indian Ambassador to several countries, including the United States and the United Kingdom, in the mid-20th century.
While the surname Narasimhan has its origins in southern India, it has since spread to other parts of the country and even beyond, with individuals bearing this name found in various regions and communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Narasimhan
Among Census respondents with the surname Narasimhan, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Narasimhan 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 Narasimhan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.6% · 998
- Two or more races2.1% · 22
- White1.9% · 20
- Black or African American0.2% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.2% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Narasimhan
Narasimhan 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
#30,799
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 756
+311 bearers (+69.9%)
Per 100,000 0.26
Rank movement Up 14,509 places
2020
#24,912
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,044
+288 bearers (+38.1%)
Per 100,000 0.35
Rank movement Up 5,887 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #45,308 | 445 | 0.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #30,799 | 756 | 0.26 | +311 bearers (+69.9%) | Up 14,509 places |
| 2020 | #24,912 | 1,044 | 0.35 | +288 bearers (+38.1%) | Up 5,887 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 Narasimhan 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 | #30,799 | #24,912 | 19.1% |
| Count | 756 | 1,044 | 38.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.26 | 0.35 | 34.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Narasimhan bearers went from 756 to 1,044 (+38.1% change). The surname moved up 5,887 positions in the national ranking, going from #30,799 to #24,912.
FAQ
Narasimhan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Narasimhan?
Name Census estimates that about 1,197 living Americans carry the surname Narasimhan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 286,344 residents.
How common is Narasimhan?
Narasimhan ranks #24,912 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.35 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 1,044 people with the surname Narasimhan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,197), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.35 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.35 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 Narasimhan.
Has Narasimhan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Narasimhan went from 756 recorded bearers to 1,044. That is an increase of 288 (+38.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #30,799 to #24,912.
What does the Census say about the background of Narasimhan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Narasimhan, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.1%) and White (1.9%). 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 Narasimhan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.6% (998 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Narasimhan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (95.6%), Two or More Races (2.1%), White (1.9%). 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 Narasimhan (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 Narasimhan mean?
A Tamil surname derived from the name of the Hindu god Narasimha, the man-lion avatar of Vishnu. 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 Narasimhan (0.35 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 have the surname Narasimhan?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.