2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Poddar
An Indian surname indicating an ancestry of wealthy merchants or traders.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 561 Americans carry the last name Poddar. That puts it at #46,865 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 610,970 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Poddar 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
561
1 in 610,970
Census rank
#46,865
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
489
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 489 bearers of the surname Poddar in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 46865th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Poddar, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Poddar
The surname PODDAR has its origins in the Indian subcontinent. It is derived from the Sanskrit word 'Poddar', which means a trader or a merchant. The name was prevalent among the Agarwal and Vaishya communities, who were traditionally involved in trade and commerce.
The earliest records of the name PODDAR can be traced back to the 16th century, during the Mughal period in India. The name appears in several historical documents and manuscripts from that era, indicating the prominence of PODDAR families in the trading activities of the time.
One of the earliest known bearers of the PODDAR surname was Shri Moti Ram Poddar, who lived in the 17th century and was a prominent merchant in the city of Jaipur, Rajasthan. He is believed to have established a successful trading business that dealt in textiles and spices.
Another notable PODDAR was Raja Jugal Kishore Poddar, who lived in the late 18th century and was a wealthy landowner and philanthropist in the Bengal region. He is credited with establishing several educational institutions and charitable organizations during his lifetime.
In the 19th century, the PODDAR surname gained further recognition with the rise of the Poddar family of Calcutta (now Kolkata), West Bengal. This family was involved in various business ventures, including jute mills, tea plantations, and banking. One of the most prominent members was Sir Rajendra Nath Poddar, who was born in 1857 and became a successful industrialist and philanthropist.
The name PODDAR was also associated with several place names in India, such as Poddar Nagar in Uttar Pradesh and Poddar Colony in Delhi. These places were named after influential PODDAR families or individuals who contributed significantly to their development.
Other notable individuals with the PODDAR surname include Dr. Prithvi Raj Poddar, a renowned educationist and founder of the Prithvi Raj Poddar Education Trust in Mumbai, and Anand Chand Poddar, a prominent businessman and philanthropist from Rajasthan who lived in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Poddar
Among Census respondents with the surname Poddar, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Poddar 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 Poddar surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander93.0% · 455
- White4.1% · 20
- Two or more races1.0% · 5
- Black or African American0.6% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino0.6% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Poddar
Poddar 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
#75,069
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 257
+126 bearers (+96.2%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 46,711 places
2020
#46,865
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 489
+232 bearers (+90.3%)
Per 100,000 0.16
Rank movement Up 28,204 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #75,069 | 257 | 0.09 | +126 bearers (+96.2%) | Up 46,711 places |
| 2020 | #46,865 | 489 | 0.16 | +232 bearers (+90.3%) | Up 28,204 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 Poddar 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 | #75,069 | #46,865 | 37.6% |
| Count | 257 | 489 | 90.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.09 | 0.16 | 81.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Poddar bearers went from 257 to 489 (+90.3% change). The surname moved up 28,204 positions in the national ranking, going from #75,069 to #46,865.
FAQ
Poddar surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Poddar?
Name Census estimates that about 561 living Americans carry the surname Poddar. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 610,970 residents.
How common is Poddar?
Poddar ranks #46,865 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.16 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 489 people with the surname Poddar. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (561), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.16 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 Poddar.
Has Poddar become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Poddar went from 257 recorded bearers to 489. That is an increase of 232 (+90.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #75,069 to #46,865.
What does the Census say about the background of Poddar?
Among Census respondents with the surname Poddar, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Poddar in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (455 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Poddar appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (93.0%), White (4.1%), Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Poddar (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 Poddar mean?
An Indian surname indicating an ancestry of wealthy merchants or traders. 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 Poddar (0.16 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 many Americans have the surname Poddar?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.