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

Pao, 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 Pao surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pao in America

Pao is the 21382nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pao surname appeared 1,224 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 Pao.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pao 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 Pao

The surname PAO originates from the Cantonese Chinese language and has its roots in the Guangdong province of southern China, particularly in the Pearl River Delta region. It is believed to have emerged during the Ming Dynasty, which ruled China from 1368 to 1644.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name PAO can be found in the genealogical records of the Chiu Chow (Chaozhou) region, a coastal area in eastern Guangdong. These records date back to the 16th century and mention several families bearing the PAO surname. It is likely that the name was derived from a combination of ancient Chinese characters representing various concepts or geographic locations.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), the PAO surname spread across Guangdong and neighboring provinces, as families migrated for trade, employment, and other opportunities. Some notable individuals from this period include PAO Qingshan (1772-1849), a renowned scholar and poet, and PAO Yizhi (1787-1855), a prominent official who served in the imperial court.

In the 19th century, the PAO surname began to appear in overseas Chinese communities as a result of the large-scale emigration from southern China. PAO Kuntien (1841-1917), a successful businessman and philanthropist in Singapore, was one of the earliest and most influential figures with this surname outside of China.

Another notable individual was PAO Chungyin (1876-1964), a pioneering Chinese journalist and publisher who founded the influential newspaper Sin Wan Pao in Hong Kong in 1919. His son, PAO Yucheng (1915-1982), was a renowned diplomat and the first Chinese representative to the United Nations.

In the 20th century, the PAO surname gained further prominence with individuals like PAO Liyuan (1918-2013), a celebrated actress and opera performer in China, and PAO Chunren (1923-2016), a prominent physicist and academician who made significant contributions to the study of solid-state physics.

While the surname PAO has its origins in southern China, it has since spread globally through migration and is now found in various parts of the world, particularly in Chinese diaspora communities.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pao

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

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

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

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