2000
#16,450
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,610
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.60
Rare Last name
Sethi
A Punjabi surname referring to the Khatri caste, traditionally associated with trading, merchantry, and moneylending.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,032 Americans carry the last name Sethi. That puts it at #8,931 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,009 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sethi 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Sethi with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 85,009
Census rank
#8,931
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,516 bearers of the surname Sethi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8931st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sethi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sethi
The surname Sethi has its origins in the Indian subcontinent, where it is believed to have emerged in the 15th century CE. It is derived from the Sanskrit word 'seth,' which means a wealthy merchant or banker. The name is commonly found among the trading communities of northern India, particularly in the states of Punjab, Haryana, and Uttar Pradesh.
The Sethi name is closely associated with the Khatri caste, a community traditionally engaged in trade and commerce. The Khatris played a pivotal role in the flourishing trade networks of the Mughal Empire, and many Sethi families rose to prominence as successful merchants and financiers during this period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Sethi name can be found in the chronicles of the Mughal court, where a prominent merchant named Lal Chand Sethi is mentioned as a trader in the 16th century. Another notable figure was Rai Anirudh Chand Sethi, a wealthy banker from Delhi who lived during the reign of Aurangzeb in the 17th century.
Throughout history, the Sethi name has been closely linked to various place names and older spellings. For instance, the town of Sethipur in Uttar Pradesh is said to have been founded by a Sethi family, and the name may have evolved from the Persian word 'sethi,' which means a landowner or a lord.
Among the notable individuals bearing the Sethi surname, one can mention:
1. Amar Singh Sethi (1871-1949), an Indian freedom fighter and political activist from Punjab.
2. Manmohan Singh Sethi (1912-1988), an eminent Urdu poet and literary critic from Uttar Pradesh.
3. Rajendra Kumar Sethi (1925-1999), an acclaimed Hindi novelist and short story writer from Rajasthan.
4. Gobind Behari Lal Sethi (1924-2008), a distinguished Indian painter and artist from Uttar Pradesh.
5. Jaspal Inder Singh Sethi (born 1954), an Indian economist and academic who served as the Vice-Chancellor of Guru Nanak Dev University.
The Sethi name has a rich historical legacy, deeply rooted in the trading traditions of northern India and the cultural heritage of the Khatri community. Throughout the centuries, individuals bearing this surname have made significant contributions across various fields, including literature, art, and academia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sethi
Among Census respondents with the surname Sethi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Sethi 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 Sethi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander88.5% · 3,112
- White4.9% · 171
- Two or more races4.6% · 163
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 35
- Black or African American0.6% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sethi
Sethi 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
#11,836
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,645
+1,035 bearers (+64.3%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 4,614 places
2020
#8,931
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,516
+871 bearers (+32.9%)
Per 100,000 1.18
Rank movement Up 2,905 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,450 | 1,610 | 0.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,836 | 2,645 | 0.90 | +1,035 bearers (+64.3%) | Up 4,614 places |
| 2020 | #8,931 | 3,516 | 1.18 | +871 bearers (+32.9%) | Up 2,905 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 Sethi 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 | #11,836 | #8,931 | 24.5% |
| Count | 2,645 | 3,516 | 32.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 1.18 | 30.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sethi bearers went from 2,645 to 3,516 (+32.9% change). The surname moved up 2,905 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,836 to #8,931.
FAQ
Sethi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sethi?
Name Census estimates that about 4,032 living Americans carry the surname Sethi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,009 residents.
How common is Sethi?
Sethi ranks #8,931 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.18 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 3,516 people with the surname Sethi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,032), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.18 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 Sethi.
Has Sethi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sethi went from 2,645 recorded bearers to 3,516. That is an increase of 871 (+32.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,836 to #8,931.
What does the Census say about the background of Sethi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sethi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.9%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Sethi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.5% (3,112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sethi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (88.5%), White (4.9%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Sethi (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 Sethi mean?
A Punjabi surname referring to the Khatri caste, traditionally associated with trading, merchantry, and moneylending. 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 Sethi (1.18 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 Sethi?
Find out how common the surname Sethi is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.