2000
#144,908
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sasamoto
A Japanese surname derived from a geographic location.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Sasamoto. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sasamoto 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Sasamoto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sasamoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Two or More Races (7.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sasamoto
The surname Sasamoto originates from Japan and dates back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Japanese words "sasa" meaning bamboo and "moto" meaning origin or source, indicating that the name may have been given to families residing near bamboo groves or forests.
The earliest recorded instances of the Sasamoto name can be found in local census records and tax registers from the Kamakura period (1185-1333 CE) in the Kanto region of central Japan. During this time, the name was sometimes spelled with variations such as "Sasamotoo" or "Sasamoto-ke", indicating a family lineage.
In the late 16th century, a minor samurai clan known as the Sasamoto-shi rose to prominence in the service of the powerful Tokugawa shogunate. They hailed from the Musashi Province (present-day Tokyo and Saitama prefectures) and were recorded as valiant warriors during the Sengoku period's numerous battles.
One notable figure bearing the Sasamoto name was Sasamoto Yoshikata (1513-1583), a skilled archer and retainer of the renowned Hojo clan. He was praised for his bravery in defending the Odawara Castle against the forces of Toyotomi Hideyoshi in 1590.
Another historical reference to the Sasamoto name can be found in the "Taiheiki", a 14th-century chronicle of the war between the Northern and Southern imperial courts. It mentions a Sasamoto Noritsuna (1305-1380), a skilled swordsman who fought alongside Emperor Go-Daigo's forces.
In the Edo period (1603-1868), the Sasamoto family produced several accomplished artists and scholars. Sasamoto Tsunenobu (1639-1719) was a renowned painter and calligrapher who served the Tokugawa shogunate as an official artist.
Sasamoto Masayuki (1801-1873) was a prominent botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of Japanese flora during the late Edo and early Meiji periods.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sasamoto
Among Census respondents with the surname Sasamoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Two or More Races (7.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sasamoto 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 Sasamoto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander79.8% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino8.8% · 10
- Two or more races7.0% · 8
- White4.4% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sasamoto
Sasamoto 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
#150,452
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 109
+4 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,544 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+5 bearers (+4.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 3,957 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #144,908 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #150,452 | 109 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.8%) | Down 5,544 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.6%) | Up 3,957 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 Sasamoto 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 | #150,452 | #146,495 | 2.6% |
| Count | 109 | 114 | 4.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sasamoto bearers went from 109 to 114 (+4.6% change). The surname moved up 3,957 positions in the national ranking, going from #150,452 to #146,495.
FAQ
Sasamoto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sasamoto?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Sasamoto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Sasamoto?
Sasamoto ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Sasamoto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Sasamoto.
Has Sasamoto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sasamoto went from 109 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 5 (+4.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #150,452 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Sasamoto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sasamoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.8%) and Two or More Races (7.0%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Sasamoto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.8% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sasamoto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (79.8%), Hispanic (8.8%), Two or More Races (7.0%). 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 Sasamoto (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 Sasamoto mean?
A Japanese surname derived from a geographic location. 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 Sasamoto (0.04 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 are called Sasamoto?
If you just want to know how common the surname Sasamoto is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.