2010
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sayal
A rare surname of uncertain origin and meaning.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Sayal. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sayal 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Sayal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (15.1%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sayal
The surname SAYAL is believed to have originated from the Indian subcontinent, particularly in the northern regions of India and Pakistan. It is thought to be derived from the Sanskrit word "saayala," which means "evening" or "dusk." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived or worked during the evening hours.
The earliest known record of the SAYAL surname dates back to the 16th century, when it appeared in various historical documents and manuscripts from the Mughal Empire. During this period, the SAYAL name was primarily concentrated in the areas around Delhi and Agra.
One notable individual bearing the SAYAL surname was Mirza Abdur Rahim Sayal, a renowned poet and scholar who lived during the reign of Mughal Emperor Akbar in the late 16th century. He was known for his contributions to Persian literature and his works are still studied today.
In the 18th century, the SAYAL name began to spread to other parts of India and Pakistan as people migrated and settled in new regions. One famous bearer of the name was Syed Ahmad Sayal, a prominent Muslim leader and reformist who played a significant role in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British East India Company.
During the 19th century, the SAYAL surname also found its way to other parts of the world, including East Africa and the Caribbean, due to the migration of Indian indentured laborers during the British colonial era. One notable individual from this period was Mirza Ghalib Sayal, a renowned Urdu poet who was born in Agra in 1797 and is considered one of the greatest poets of the Urdu language.
In the early 20th century, the SAYAL name gained prominence in the field of literature and academia. One notable figure was Zafar Sayal, a Pakistani writer and academic who was born in 1911 and became known for his contributions to Urdu literature and his work in promoting education in Pakistan.
Another significant bearer of the SAYAL surname was Allama Muhammad Iqbal Sayal, a philosopher, poet, and politician who is widely regarded as the spiritual father of Pakistan. Born in 1877 in Sialkot, he played a pivotal role in the Pakistan Movement and is celebrated as a national hero in Pakistan.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sayal
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (15.1%) and Two or More Races (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Sayal 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 Sayal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander84.0% · 100
- White15.1% · 18
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sayal
Sayal appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+14 bearers (+13.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 12,119 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | +14 bearers (+13.3%) | Up 12,119 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 Sayal 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 | #154,907 | #142,788 | 7.8% |
| Count | 105 | 119 | 13.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sayal bearers went from 105 to 119 (+13.3% change). The surname moved up 12,119 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #142,788.
FAQ
Sayal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sayal?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Sayal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Sayal?
Sayal ranks #142,788 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 119 people with the surname Sayal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), 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 Sayal.
Has Sayal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sayal went from 105 recorded bearers to 119. That is an increase of 14 (+13.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Sayal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sayal, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (15.1%) and Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Sayal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sayal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (84.0%), White (15.1%), Two or More Races (0.8%). 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 Sayal (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 Sayal mean?
A rare surname of uncertain origin and meaning. 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 Sayal (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 share the surname Sayal?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.