2000
#19,784
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,259
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.47
Rare Last name
Puri
A surname of Indian origin referring to someone from Puri, a city in the state of Odisha.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,212 Americans carry the last name Puri. That puts it at #10,866 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 106,711 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Puri 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Puri with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 106,711
Census rank
#10,866
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,801 bearers of the surname Puri in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10866th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Puri, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Puri
The surname Puri is believed to have originated in India, where it is thought to have derived from the Sanskrit word "puri," meaning "town" or "city." This name likely first emerged in the medieval period, though its exact origins are uncertain.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Puri can be found in the Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th-century document commissioned by the Mughal emperor Akbar. This text mentions several individuals with the surname Puri, suggesting that the name was already well-established by that time.
The name Puri may also be linked to certain place names in India, such as the city of Puri in the state of Odisha, which is home to the famous Jagannath Temple. It is possible that the surname originated among individuals who hailed from or had connections to this region.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the surname Puri. One example is Sayyid Ahmad Khan Puri (1550-1624), a prominent Sufi scholar and poet from the Mughal era. Another is Raja Ram Mohan Roy Puri (1772-1833), a renowned social reformer and one of the founders of the Brahmo Samaj movement.
In more recent times, the Puri surname has also been associated with individuals in various fields. These include Harish Puri (1925-2003), an Indian diplomat who served as ambassador to several countries, and Raghunath Puri (1925-2007), a renowned Indian classical vocalist and recipient of the Padma Bhushan award.
Additionally, the name Puri has been carried by several writers and academics, such as Balraj Puri (1919-2014), a noted Punjabi writer and recipient of the Sahitya Akademi Award, and Satya Narain Puri (1927-2011), a distinguished historian and former vice-chancellor of the University of Delhi.
It is worth noting that while the surname Puri is primarily found in India, it has also been adopted by individuals of Indian descent living in other parts of the world, reflecting the diaspora of Indian communities over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Puri
Among Census respondents with the surname Puri, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Puri 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 Puri surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander84.6% · 2,371
- White7.6% · 212
- Two or more races4.2% · 118
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 74
- Black or African American0.5% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Puri
Puri 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
#14,799
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,005
+746 bearers (+59.3%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 4,985 places
2020
#10,866
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,801
+796 bearers (+39.7%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 3,933 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,784 | 1,259 | 0.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,799 | 2,005 | 0.68 | +746 bearers (+59.3%) | Up 4,985 places |
| 2020 | #10,866 | 2,801 | 0.94 | +796 bearers (+39.7%) | Up 3,933 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 Puri 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 | #14,799 | #10,866 | 26.6% |
| Count | 2,005 | 2,801 | 39.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.68 | 0.94 | 37.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Puri bearers went from 2,005 to 2,801 (+39.7% change). The surname moved up 3,933 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,799 to #10,866.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Puri
FAQ
Puri surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Puri?
Name Census estimates that about 3,212 living Americans carry the surname Puri. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 106,711 residents.
How common is Puri?
Puri ranks #10,866 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.94 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,801 people with the surname Puri. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,212), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.94 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Puri.
Has Puri become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Puri went from 2,005 recorded bearers to 2,801. That is an increase of 796 (+39.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,799 to #10,866.
What does the Census say about the background of Puri?
Among Census respondents with the surname Puri, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.6%) and Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Puri in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.6% (2,371 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Puri appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (84.6%), White (7.6%), Two or More Races (4.2%). 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 Puri (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 Puri mean?
A surname of Indian origin referring to someone from Puri, a city in the state of Odisha. 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 Puri (0.94 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 people share the surname Puri?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.