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

Özdemir, 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 Özdemir surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Özdemir in America

Özdemir is the 29198th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Özdemir surname appeared 811 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 Özdemir.

We can also compare 2010 data for Özdemir 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 Özdemir

The surname Ozdemir is of Turkish origin and can be traced back to the late Ottoman era, around the 16th century. It is derived from the Turkish words "oz," meaning "genuine" or "authentic," and "demir," meaning "iron." Thus, the name roughly translates to "genuine iron" or "authentic iron."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ozdemir can be found in the Ottoman tax registers (tahrir defterleri) from the late 16th century, where it was used to refer to individuals residing in various regions of Anatolia, particularly in central and western Turkey.

The name Ozdemir may have its roots in the metalworking industry, as it could have been used to describe individuals who worked with iron or were skilled blacksmiths. Alternatively, it could have been a descriptive surname given to someone considered strong, resilient, or steadfast like iron.

In the 18th century, the name Ozdemir appeared in historical records from the city of Konya, located in the central Anatolian region of Turkey. One notable figure from this period was Ozdemir Pasha (1723-1781), an Ottoman statesman and military commander who served as the governor of several provinces, including Baghdad and Damascus.

Another prominent individual with the surname Ozdemir was Hüseyin Ozdemir (1861-1923), a Turkish politician and military officer who played a significant role in the Turkish War of Independence. He served as the Minister of War in the Ottoman government and later joined the Turkish National Movement led by Mustafa Kemal Atatürk.

In the 20th century, Ozdemir Asaf (1923-2008) was a renowned Turkish poet, novelist, and playwright. He was a prominent figure in Turkish literature and was awarded the prestigious Orhan Kemal Novel Prize in 1984 for his novel "Uzun Sevmek" (Long Love).

Necmettin Ozdemir (1914-1997) was a Turkish diplomat and politician who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Turkey from 1964 to 1965. He played a crucial role in shaping Turkey's foreign policy during the Cold War era.

Lastly, Cem Ozdemir (born 1965) is a German politician of Turkish descent who has served as a member of the German Bundestag and co-chair of the Green Party in Germany. He is a prominent figure in German politics and has been instrumental in promoting environmental and social issues.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Özdemir

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

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

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

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