2000
#93,841
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 181
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Nohara
A Japanese surname potentially derived from a geographic location or relating to fields or wilderness.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 204 Americans carry the last name Nohara. That puts it at #106,589 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,680,168 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nohara 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
204
1 in 1,680,168
Census rank
#106,589
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
178
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 178 bearers of the surname Nohara in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 106589th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nohara, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (12.9%) and Hispanic (7.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nohara
The surname NOHARA is believed to have originated in Japan during the late 16th or early 17th century. It is thought to be derived from a combination of the Japanese words "no" meaning "field" or "plain" and "hara" meaning "prairie" or "meadow." This suggests the name may have initially referred to someone who lived or worked in an open, grassy area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the NOHARA name appears in a document from the Edo period (1603-1868) that lists landowners and farmers in the Kanto region. A man named Jiro NOHARA is mentioned as owning a small plot of farmland near present-day Tokyo.
During the Meiji era (1868-1912), the NOHARA surname started appearing more frequently in official records and census data from various prefectures across Japan. This was likely due to the government's efforts to standardize family names during this period of modernization.
In 1712, a Buddhist monk named Shunyo NOHARA is said to have founded a small temple called Nohara-ji in what is now Shizuoka Prefecture. The temple still exists today and some descendants of NOHARA have taken on roles there over the centuries.
A renowned poet and artist named Bairei NOHARA was born in 1838 in Kyoto. He became known for his paintings of flora and fauna, as well as his classic waka poetry compositions. Bairei NOHARA's works are featured in museums across Japan.
In the late 19th century, a samurai named Takeshi NOHARA fought in the Boshin War which led to the overthrow of the Tokugawa shogunate. Historical accounts describe NOHARA as a skilled swordsman born in 1835 in what is now Saitama Prefecture.
The 1920s saw the rise of Kanoko NOHARA, a celebrated geisha and dancer from the Gion district of Kyoto. Born in 1898, she was renowned for her graceful performances and became the favorite entertainer of wealthy patrons and dignitaries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nohara
Among Census respondents with the surname Nohara, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (12.9%) and Hispanic (7.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Nohara 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 Nohara surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander76.4% · 136
- Two or more races12.9% · 23
- Hispanic or Latino7.9% · 14
- White2.8% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nohara
Nohara 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
#89,069
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 208
+27 bearers (+14.9%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 4,772 places
2020
#106,589
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 178
-30 bearers (-14.4%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 17,520 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #93,841 | 181 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #89,069 | 208 | 0.07 | +27 bearers (+14.9%) | Up 4,772 places |
| 2020 | #106,589 | 178 | 0.06 | -30 bearers (-14.4%) | Down 17,520 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 Nohara 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 | #89,069 | #106,589 | -19.7% |
| Count | 208 | 178 | -14.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.06 | -14.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nohara bearers went from 208 to 178 (-14.4% change). The surname moved down 17,520 positions in the national ranking, going from #89,069 to #106,589.
FAQ
Nohara surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nohara?
Name Census estimates that about 204 living Americans carry the surname Nohara. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,680,168 residents.
How common is Nohara?
Nohara ranks #106,589 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 178 people with the surname Nohara. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (204), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Nohara.
Has Nohara become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nohara went from 208 recorded bearers to 178. That is a decrease of 30 (-14.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #89,069 to #106,589.
What does the Census say about the background of Nohara?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nohara, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 76.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (12.9%) and Hispanic (7.9%). 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 Nohara in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.4% (136 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nohara appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (76.4%), Two or More Races (12.9%), Hispanic (7.9%). 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 Nohara (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 Nohara mean?
A Japanese surname potentially derived from a geographic location or relating to fields or wilderness. 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 Nohara (0.06 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 common is the surname Nohara?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Nohara at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.