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

Pokala, 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 Pokala surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pokala in America

Pokala is the 158432nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pokala surname appeared 102 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 Pokala.

The history of the last name Pokala

The surname POKALA is believed to have originated in India, specifically in the southern regions of the country. It can be traced back to the 16th century or earlier. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "pokala," which translates to "pond" or "lake."

In some historical records, the name is also spelled as "Pokhala" or "Pokla," reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and transliteration from native Indian languages to English. The earliest known mention of the surname dates back to a land grant document from the Vijayanagar Empire in the 16th century, where a person named Rama Pokala was listed as a recipient of a village.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the POKALA surname appeared in various administrative records and chronicles of the Nayak and Maratha rulers in the Deccan region. One notable figure from this era was Govinda Pokala, a prominent scholar and poet who lived in the late 17th century and authored several works in Telugu literature.

As the British colonial presence in India expanded in the 19th century, the POKALA surname can be found in various official records, such as tax registers and census documents. In the 1880s, a POKALA family was recorded as residing in the town of Pedana, which was then part of the Madras Presidency.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the POKALA surname in the West was Venkata Pokala, who immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century and settled in California. He worked as a farmer and was among the first wave of Indian immigrants to the United States.

Throughout the 20th century, several individuals with the POKALA surname gained recognition in various fields. Prabhakara Pokala (1920-1998) was a prominent Indian journalist and editor who worked for several influential publications. Rajani Pokala (born 1952) is a renowned classical dancer and choreographer, known for her contributions to the Kuchipudi dance form.

In the field of academia, Venkata Pokala (1935-2011) was a respected professor of mathematics at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, while Satya Pokala (born 1968) is a prominent computer scientist and entrepreneur, currently serving as the CEO of a technology company based in Silicon Valley.

Overall, the POKALA surname has a rich history and has been associated with various accomplished individuals across different domains, reflecting the diverse cultural and linguistic heritage of India.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pokala

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

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 Pokala 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.

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

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

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