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

Shafir, 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 Shafir surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shafir in America

Shafir is the 90113th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Shafir surname appeared 205 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Shafir.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shafir 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 Shafir

The surname Shafir is believed to have originated in the Middle East, possibly in the region of modern-day Iran or Turkey. It is thought to be derived from the Persian or Arabic word "shafir," which means "trumpet" or "trumpeter." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who played the trumpet or was associated with music in some way.

In the early Islamic period, surnames were often formed from professions or occupations. The use of the name Shafir as a surname likely dates back to this time, when it was adopted by individuals or families involved in trumpet-playing or music-related activities.

While there are no definitive historical records of the name's earliest appearances, it is possible that it may have been mentioned in ancient manuscripts or documents from the region. However, concrete evidence of such occurrences is scarce.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Shafir was Ali Shafir, a Persian musician and composer who lived in the 13th century. He was known for his contributions to the development of Persian classical music and is considered an important figure in the history of Iranian music.

In the 16th century, there was a notable scholar and poet named Ahmad Shafir, who hailed from the city of Isfahan in modern-day Iran. He was renowned for his mastery of Arabic and Persian literature and wrote numerous works on various subjects, including poetry and philosophy.

Another notable individual with the surname Shafir was Mirza Mohammad Shafir, a 19th-century Iranian diplomat and statesman. He served as the Ambassador of Persia (modern-day Iran) to several European countries and played a significant role in the modernization of Iran during the Qajar dynasty.

In the early 20th century, Hossein Shafir was a prominent Iranian painter and artist known for his contributions to the modernist movement in Iranian art. His works often depicted traditional Iranian themes and landscapes, and he is considered one of the pioneers of modern Iranian painting.

Lastly, Yousef Shafir was a Syrian writer and journalist who lived in the late 20th century. He was known for his critical writings on social and political issues in the Middle East and was a vocal advocate for human rights and democracy in the region.

It's worth noting that the spelling and pronunciation of the surname Shafir may vary slightly across different regions and cultures, reflecting the influence of local languages and dialects.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shafir

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!