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

Sarkar, 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 Sarkar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sarkar in America

Sarkar is the 13976th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sarkar surname appeared 2,157 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 Sarkar.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sarkar 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 Sarkar

The surname Sarkar is of Indian origin, believed to have originated in the 14th or 15th century. It is derived from the Sanskrit word "sarkar," which means "government" or "authority." The name was likely given to individuals who held positions of authority or worked for the government during that time.

Sarkar is a common surname found among Hindus, particularly in the states of West Bengal, Assam, and Bangladesh. It is also found in other parts of India and among the Bengali diaspora around the world.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Sarkar can be found in the Ain-i-Akbari, a 16th-century administrative manual written during the reign of the Mughal Emperor Akbar. This document mentions several individuals with the surname Sarkar who held administrative positions in the Mughal Empire.

In the 17th century, the name Sarkar appeared in the records of the British East India Company, which had established trading posts in various parts of India. Some notable individuals with the surname Sarkar from this period include Ramkrishna Sarkar (1668-1732), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Bengal, and Govinda Sarkar (1692-1760), a prominent scholar and writer.

During the 19th century, several individuals with the surname Sarkar gained recognition in various fields. One such individual was Iswarchandra Sarkar (1834-1889), a renowned Bengali novelist and playwright. Another was Jadunath Sarkar (1870-1958), a renowned historian and scholar known for his works on the Mughal Empire and the Indian independence movement.

In the 20th century, the name Sarkar continued to be associated with notable figures. Amiya Sarkar (1901-1985) was a renowned Bengali writer and poet, while Benoy Sarkar (1914-1992) was a prominent Indian sculptor and painter. Jayanta Sarkar (1923-2005) was a renowned Bengali writer and academic who made significant contributions to the study of Bengali literature.

Other notable individuals with the surname Sarkar include Nrisingha Prasad Sarkar (1885-1949), a prominent Indian lawyer and politician who served as the President of the Indian National Congress, and Amal Sarkar (1913-1987), a renowned Indian political activist and trade union leader.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sarkar

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

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

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

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