2000
#7,249
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,243
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.57
Rare Last name
Saito
A Japanese surname meaning "purification wisteria" or referring to someone who lived near a wisteria tree.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,093 Americans carry the last name Saito. That puts it at #8,817 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,742 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Saito 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
4.1K
1 in 83,742
Census rank
#8,817
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,569 bearers of the surname Saito in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8817th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Saito, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.9%) and White (6.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Saito
The surname "SAITO" is of Japanese origin, and its roots can be traced back to the 8th century AD during the Nara period. It is believed to have derived from the Japanese word "sai," meaning a narrow path or small road, and "to," meaning a village or settlement. Thus, the name Saito may have initially referred to a person or family living near a narrow path or small road.
In ancient Japanese records, variations of the name, such as "Saitou" and "Saitoh," can be found. The earliest known mention of the name Saito appears in the Shoku Nihongi, an imperial chronicle completed in 797 AD, where it referred to a family of samurai warriors who served the imperial court.
During the Kamakura period (1185-1333 AD), the Saito clan rose to prominence as a powerful samurai family in the Shinano Province (modern-day Nagano Prefecture). They were known for their military exploits and played a significant role in the political and military affairs of the time.
One of the most notable figures bearing the name Saito was Saito Dōsan (1494-1556), a powerful feudal lord during the Sengoku period. He was a skilled strategist and leader who expanded the Saito clan's territory and influence in the Mino Province (modern-day Gifu Prefecture).
Another prominent Saito was Saito Musashi-bo Benkei (1155-1189), a legendary warrior monk who served as the loyal retainer of the famous samurai Minamoto no Yoshitsune. Benkei's exploits and loyalty became the subject of numerous folktales and literary works.
In the Edo period (1603-1868), the Saito clan continued to hold significant power and influence as daimyo (feudal lords) in various domains, including Akita, Iyo (modern-day Ehime Prefecture), and Aizu (modern-day Fukushima Prefecture).
Saito Makoto (1858-1936) was a prominent statesman and politician during the Meiji and Taisho periods. He served as the Prime Minister of Japan from 1911 to 1912 and played a crucial role in modernizing Japan's government and legal system.
Saito Kiyoshi (1907-1997) was a renowned Japanese painter and printmaker known for his innovative woodblock prints and his contributions to the Sosaku Hanga movement, which emphasized artistic expression and individualism in Japanese printmaking.
Over the centuries, the surname Saito has spread across Japan, and its bearers have made significant contributions to various fields, including politics, literature, arts, and sciences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Saito
Among Census respondents with the surname Saito, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.9%) and White (6.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Saito 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 Saito surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander77.8% · 2,776
- Two or more races10.9% · 389
- White6.1% · 219
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 173
- Black or African American0.2% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Saito
Saito 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
#7,613
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,367
+124 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 1.48
Rank movement Down 364 places
2020
#8,817
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,569
-798 bearers (-18.3%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Down 1,204 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,249 | 4,243 | 1.57 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,613 | 4,367 | 1.48 | +124 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 364 places |
| 2020 | #8,817 | 3,569 | 1.19 | -798 bearers (-18.3%) | Down 1,204 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 Saito 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 | #7,613 | #8,817 | -15.8% |
| Count | 4,367 | 3,569 | -18.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.48 | 1.19 | -19.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Saito bearers went from 4,367 to 3,569 (-18.3% change). The surname moved down 1,204 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,613 to #8,817.
FAQ
Saito surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Saito?
Name Census estimates that about 4,093 living Americans carry the surname Saito. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,742 residents.
How common is Saito?
Saito ranks #8,817 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 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 3,569 people with the surname Saito. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,093), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 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 Saito.
Has Saito become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Saito went from 4,367 recorded bearers to 3,569. That is a decrease of 798 (-18.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,613 to #8,817.
What does the Census say about the background of Saito?
Among Census respondents with the surname Saito, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.9%) and White (6.1%). 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 Saito in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.8% (2,776 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Saito appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (77.8%), Two or More Races (10.9%), White (6.1%). 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 Saito (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 Saito mean?
A Japanese surname meaning "purification wisteria" or referring to someone who lived near a wisteria tree. 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 Saito (1.19 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 Saito?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.