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

Nguyễn, 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 Nguyễn surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nguyễn in America

Nguyễn is the 38th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nguyễn surname appeared 437,645 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 148 people would have the surname Nguyễn.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nguyễn 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 Nguyễn

The surname "NGUYEN" is one of the most common Vietnamese family names. It originated in the ancient Vietnamese kingdom of Au Lac, which existed from around the 7th century BCE to the 3rd century BCE in the region that is now northern Vietnam and parts of southern China.

The name "NGUYEN" is derived from the ancient Vietnamese word "Rồng" or "Rương," meaning "dragon" or "imperial." It is believed that the name was initially given to members of the royal family or those closely associated with the imperial court during the Au Lac period.

One of the earliest known references to the name "NGUYEN" can be found in the "Đại Việt Sử Ký Toàn Thư" (Complete Annals of Dai Viet), a historical text compiled in the 15th century CE, which mentions several prominent individuals bearing the surname during the medieval period.

During the Ly Dynasty (1009-1225 CE), the name "NGUYEN" gained further prominence. One notable figure was Nguyen Trai (1380-1442 CE), a renowned scholar, diplomat, and poet who served as a high-ranking official under the reign of Emperor Le Thai Tong.

Another famous individual with the surname "NGUYEN" was Nguyen Hue (1753-1792 CE), a military leader who played a crucial role in the Tay Son Rebellion and briefly ruled as Emperor Quang Trung, unifying Vietnam and expelling the Chinese Qing forces from the country.

Nguyen Du (1766-1820 CE), one of Vietnam's greatest poets and literary figures, is also remembered for his epic poem "The Tale of Kieu," which is considered a masterpiece of Vietnamese literature.

During the 19th and 20th centuries, the name "NGUYEN" became even more widespread, with many notable individuals bearing the surname. Nguyen Tat Thanh, better known as Ho Chi Minh (1890-1969 CE), was the revolutionary leader who led the struggle for Vietnamese independence and later became the first president of the Democratic Republic of Vietnam.

Nguyen Van Linh (1915-1998 CE) was a prominent Vietnamese politician who served as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of Vietnam from 1986 to 1991 and played a crucial role in initiating the Doi Moi economic reforms.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nguyễn

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

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

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

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