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

Philavanh, 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 Philavanh surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Philavanh in America

Philavanh is the 92719th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Philavanh surname appeared 198 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 Philavanh.

We can also compare 2010 data for Philavanh 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 Philavanh

The surname Philavanh is of Lao origin, tracing its roots back to the 15th century in the region now known as Laos. It is believed to be derived from the Lao words "phi" meaning spirit or supernatural being, and "lanh" meaning forest or wilderness. The name likely referred to individuals who lived in isolated or forested areas, and may have had spiritual or animistic beliefs associated with the natural world.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Philavanh name can be found in a manuscript from the Kingdom of Lan Xang, dating back to the late 16th century. This document, a record of land ownership and taxation, mentions a village headman named Thao Philavanh, who oversaw a small community in the present-day Savannakhet Province.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Philavanh name was documented in various administrative records and chronicles of the Lao kingdoms. Notable individuals from this time include Nang Philavanh, a respected healer and herbalist who lived in the Vientiane region during the late 1600s, and Thao Philavanh, a military commander who fought against Siamese invaders in the 1770s.

As Laos underwent significant changes in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Philavanh name continued to be carried by individuals from various walks of life. One prominent figure was Ong Philavanh (1855-1928), a respected Buddhist monk and scholar who authored several texts on Lao culture and traditions.

Another notable bearer of the Philavanh name was Kham Philavanh (1898-1975), a political leader and activist who played a significant role in the struggle for Lao independence from French colonial rule. He served as the first prime minister of the independent Kingdom of Laos in the late 1940s.

In more recent times, the Philavanh name has been associated with individuals in various fields, such as Somlit Philavanh (born 1946), a renowned Lao artist and sculptor, and Khamla Philavanh (born 1960), a prominent businessman and philanthropist.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Philavanh

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

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

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

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