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

Shau, 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 Shau surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shau in America

Shau is the 113791st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Shau surname appeared 154 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 Shau.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shau 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 Shau

The surname Shau is believed to have originated in China, specifically in the regions around the city of Guangzhou (formerly known as Canton) in the Guangdong province. The name is thought to have its roots in the Cantonese dialect, where "Shau" was likely a variation or romanization of a more traditional Chinese surname.

One possible origin of the name could be traced back to the Shau or Shao clan, a prominent family in the Guangdong area during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). This clan was known for producing several scholars and officials who served in the imperial court during that period.

Another theory suggests that the name Shau may have derived from the Cantonese word "sau," which means "small" or "little." It was not uncommon for Chinese surnames to originate from descriptive words or nicknames related to physical characteristics or personality traits.

In terms of historical references, the earliest known record of the Shau surname appears in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) archives, where it is mentioned in connection with various families and individuals from the Guangdong region.

One notable individual bearing the Shau surname was Shau Ying-fah (1861-1933), a prominent Chinese educator and reformer who played a significant role in modernizing the education system in Guangdong during the late Qing Dynasty and early Republican era.

Another important figure was Shau Hing-cheung (1874-1951), a renowned Cantonese opera performer and composer who helped popularize and preserve the art form in the early 20th century.

In the realm of literature, Shau Ting-yin (1917-1995) was a celebrated Chinese novelist and short story writer, known for his works depicting the lives of ordinary people in Guangdong during the tumultuous period of the Chinese Civil War and the early years of communist rule.

Moving beyond China, Shau Kee Tsui (1909-1977) was a prominent Hong Kong businessman and philanthropist who made significant contributions to the development of the city's education and healthcare sectors.

Lastly, Shau Wing-hung (1937-2008) was a highly respected Hong Kong actor and martial artist, renowned for his roles in numerous Kung Fu films during the golden age of Hong Kong cinema in the 1970s and 1980s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shau

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

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

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

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