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

Ruan, 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 Ruan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ruan in America

Ruan is the 8907th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ruan surname appeared 3,676 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Ruan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ruan 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 Ruan

The surname RUAN is of Chinese origin, traced back to the ancient Guangdong province of southern China. It is believed to have derived from the name of a town or village in this region, perhaps a transliteration of a local dialect pronunciation.

One of the earliest recorded references to the RUAN surname can be found in the Guangdong Genealogical Records, a collection of family histories and lineages compiled during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). These records document various branches of the RUAN clan and their ancestral villages scattered throughout the province.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as Chinese immigrants began settling in various parts of the world, the RUAN surname started appearing in historical records and documents outside of China. Notable individuals bearing this name include:

1. Ruan Lingyu (1910-1935), a celebrated Chinese silent film actress known for her tragic life and untimely death at the age of 24.

2. Ruan Yuan (1764-1849), a Chinese philosopher and scholar who made significant contributions to the Neo-Confucian movement during the Qing Dynasty.

3. Ruan Ji (210-263 AD), a renowned poet and calligrapher from the Three Kingdoms period in ancient China.

4. Ruan Xian (1764-1834), a Qing Dynasty scholar and essayist known for his works on classical Chinese literature and philosophy.

5. Ruan Xiaoxu (1826-1889), a Chinese painter and calligrapher who was particularly skilled in the traditional gongbi style of painting.

While the RUAN surname is relatively uncommon outside of China, it has a rich heritage and historical significance within Chinese culture, dating back to ancient times and appearing in various literary and artistic works over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ruan

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

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

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

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