2000
#31,704
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 689
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.26
Rare Last name
Rahmani
A Persian surname derived from "Rahm" meaning mercy or compassion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,258 Americans carry the last name Rahmani. That puts it at #14,552 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 151,796 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rahmani 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 Rahmani with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 151,796
Census rank
#14,552
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,969 bearers of the surname Rahmani in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14552nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rahmani, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (35.9%) and Two or More Races (13.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rahmani
The surname Rahmani originates from the Arabic language and has its roots in the Middle East. It is believed to have emerged in the 7th century CE during the Islamic conquests, when Arabic became the predominant language in many regions.
The name Rahmani is derived from the Arabic word "Rahman," which means "the Most Merciful" or "the Most Compassionate." It is one of the names attributed to God in Islamic tradition. The suffix "-i" indicates belonging or association, suggesting that the name Rahmani originally referred to someone associated with mercy, compassion, or divine grace.
In the early Islamic era, surnames were often derived from personal qualities, professions, or places of origin. The name Rahmani may have been initially given to individuals known for their merciful or compassionate nature, or it could have been related to their place of residence or ancestry.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Rahmani can be found in historical manuscripts and documents from the medieval Islamic world, particularly in regions like Persia (modern-day Iran), the Levant (Syria, Lebanon, and Palestine), and parts of North Africa.
One notable historical figure bearing the surname Rahmani was Abu Bakr Muhammad ibn Zakariya al-Rahmani, a renowned Persian physician and philosopher who lived in the 9th century CE. He was known for his contributions to the field of medicine and his influential works on medical ethics and philosophy.
Another prominent individual with the surname Rahmani was Ibn al-Rahmani, an Arab mathematician and astronomer from the 10th century CE. He made significant contributions to the development of trigonometry and wrote extensively on celestial mechanics and observational astronomy.
In the 13th century, there was a Persian poet and mystic named Fakhr al-Din Rahmani, who was known for his spiritual poetry and teachings on Sufism, the mystical branch of Islam.
During the Ottoman Empire, the Rahmani family held influential positions in various regions, including the Rahmani Beys, who governed parts of modern-day Iraq and Syria in the 16th and 17th centuries.
Another notable figure was Mirza Mohammad Rahmani, a 19th-century Persian diplomat and writer who served as the ambassador of Persia (Iran) to various European countries and wrote several books on Persian history and culture.
These are just a few examples of individuals who have carried the surname Rahmani throughout history, reflecting the name's rich cultural and linguistic heritage in the Middle Eastern and Islamic world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rahmani
Among Census respondents with the surname Rahmani, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (35.9%) and Two or More Races (13.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Rahmani 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 Rahmani surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White47.8% · 941
- Asian and Pacific Islander35.9% · 706
- Two or more races13.0% · 255
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 42
- Black or African American1.0% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rahmani
Rahmani 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
#23,899
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,056
+367 bearers (+53.3%)
Per 100,000 0.36
Rank movement Up 7,805 places
2020
#14,552
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,969
+913 bearers (+86.5%)
Per 100,000 0.66
Rank movement Up 9,347 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #31,704 | 689 | 0.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #23,899 | 1,056 | 0.36 | +367 bearers (+53.3%) | Up 7,805 places |
| 2020 | #14,552 | 1,969 | 0.66 | +913 bearers (+86.5%) | Up 9,347 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 Rahmani 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 | #23,899 | #14,552 | 39.1% |
| Count | 1,056 | 1,969 | 86.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.36 | 0.66 | 83.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rahmani bearers went from 1,056 to 1,969 (+86.5% change). The surname moved up 9,347 positions in the national ranking, going from #23,899 to #14,552.
FAQ
Rahmani surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rahmani?
Name Census estimates that about 2,258 living Americans carry the surname Rahmani. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 151,796 residents.
How common is Rahmani?
Rahmani ranks #14,552 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.66 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 1,969 people with the surname Rahmani. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,258), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.66 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 Rahmani.
Has Rahmani become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rahmani went from 1,056 recorded bearers to 1,969. That is an increase of 913 (+86.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #23,899 to #14,552.
What does the Census say about the background of Rahmani?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rahmani, the largest self-reported group is White at 47.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (35.9%) and Two or More Races (13.0%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Rahmani in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.8% (941 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rahmani appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (47.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (35.9%), Two or More Races (13.0%). 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 Rahmani (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 Rahmani mean?
A Persian surname derived from "Rahm" meaning mercy or compassion. 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 Rahmani (0.66 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 Rahmani?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.