2000
#52,077
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Rare Last name
Shahzad
An Arabic surname meaning "brave" or "descendant of the brave."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,173 Americans carry the last name Shahzad. That puts it at #14,974 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.63 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 157,733 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shahzad 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 Shahzad with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.2K
1 in 157,733
Census rank
#14,974
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,895 bearers of the surname Shahzad in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.63 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14974th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shahzad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shahzad
The surname Shahzad originated in the Persian language and has its roots in the regions of modern-day Iran and Afghanistan. It is derived from the combination of two Persian words, "shah" meaning king or ruler, and "zad" meaning born or descended from. The earliest recordings of this name can be traced back to the 10th century CE during the reign of the Samanid Empire in Persia.
In the 11th century, the famous Persian poet and philosopher Shahzad Balkhi, born in 1021 CE in Balkh (now in Afghanistan), was one of the earliest notable figures to bear this surname. His poetic works, particularly his collection of quatrains, were highly influential in the Persian literary tradition.
The Shahzad name gained prominence during the Ghaznavid Empire, which ruled over parts of modern-day Afghanistan, Iran, and Pakistan from the 10th to the 12th century. Several members of the royal family and nobility carried this surname, including Sultan Mahmud Shahzad, who ruled from 998 to 1030 CE and was known for his military conquests and patronage of arts and literature.
As the Persian influence spread across the region, the Shahzad surname was also adopted by various ethnic groups, including Pashtuns, Tajiks, and others. It became particularly prevalent in the areas of present-day Afghanistan and the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa region of Pakistan.
One notable figure from the 16th century was Mir Shahzad Khan, a Pashtun warrior and chieftain who played a significant role in the Afghan resistance against the Mughal Empire. He was born in 1525 in the Swat Valley (now in Pakistan) and is remembered for his bravery and leadership in defending his homeland.
Another prominent individual was Shahzad Husain Khan, a Mughal-era poet and scholar who lived in the 17th century. Born in 1628 in Delhi, he was renowned for his mastery of Persian poetry and his contributions to the literary circles of the Mughal court.
In the 19th century, Shahzad Khan Durrani, a Pashtun nobleman and military commander, gained recognition for his role in the Afghan-Sikh Wars. He was born in 1810 in Kandahar (now in Afghanistan) and played a crucial part in the Afghan resistance against the Sikh Empire's expansion.
The Shahzad surname continues to be widely used among various ethnic groups in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and parts of Iran, carrying a rich historical legacy and cultural significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shahzad
Among Census respondents with the surname Shahzad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Shahzad 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 Shahzad surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander90.2% · 1,709
- White3.7% · 71
- Two or more races3.5% · 67
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 36
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shahzad
Shahzad 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
#24,404
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,026
+651 bearers (+173.6%)
Per 100,000 0.35
Rank movement Up 27,673 places
2020
#14,974
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,895
+869 bearers (+84.7%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Up 9,430 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #52,077 | 375 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #24,404 | 1,026 | 0.35 | +651 bearers (+173.6%) | Up 27,673 places |
| 2020 | #14,974 | 1,895 | 0.63 | +869 bearers (+84.7%) | Up 9,430 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 Shahzad 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 | #24,404 | #14,974 | 38.6% |
| Count | 1,026 | 1,895 | 84.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.35 | 0.63 | 81.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shahzad bearers went from 1,026 to 1,895 (+84.7% change). The surname moved up 9,430 positions in the national ranking, going from #24,404 to #14,974.
FAQ
Shahzad surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shahzad?
Name Census estimates that about 2,173 living Americans carry the surname Shahzad. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 157,733 residents.
How common is Shahzad?
Shahzad ranks #14,974 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.63 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 1,895 people with the surname Shahzad. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,173), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.63 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.63 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 Shahzad.
Has Shahzad become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shahzad went from 1,026 recorded bearers to 1,895. That is an increase of 869 (+84.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #24,404 to #14,974.
What does the Census say about the background of Shahzad?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shahzad, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Shahzad in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (1,709 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shahzad appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (90.2%), White (3.7%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Shahzad (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 Shahzad mean?
An Arabic surname meaning "brave" or "descendant of the brave." 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 Shahzad (0.63 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 have the last name Shahzad?
See how many people are called Shahzad on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.