2000
#150,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Shemon
A Jewish surname derived from the Hebrew "Shim'on" meaning "he has heard" or "he has listened".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Shemon. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Shemon 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Shemon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Shemon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Shemon
The surname SHEMON has its origins in the Middle East, particularly in the region now known as Lebanon. It is believed to have emerged during the Byzantine period, which spanned from the 4th to the 15th centuries. The name is derived from the Aramaic root "sh-m-n," which means "to be fat" or "to be prosperous." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person of substantial wealth or prosperity.
The earliest known recorded instances of the surname SHEMON can be traced back to the 11th century, when it appeared in various manuscripts and chronicles from the region. One notable mention is found in the "Chronicle of Michael the Syrian," a historical work written in the late 12th century, which refers to a person with the surname SHEMON who held a prominent position in the court of the Seljuk Empire.
During the Crusades, which took place from the 11th to the 13th centuries, the surname SHEMON was also documented among Christian communities in the Levant region. This is evidenced by records from the Latin Patriarchate of Jerusalem, which mention individuals with the surname SHEMON who lived in cities such as Beirut and Tripoli.
As the centuries passed, the SHEMON surname spread to other parts of the Middle East and the Mediterranean region. In the 14th century, there are records of a merchant named Yusuf SHEMON who traded goods between the ports of Alexandria and Venice. Additionally, in the 16th century, a scholar named Musa SHEMON was renowned for his expertise in Islamic jurisprudence and taught at the prestigious Al-Azhar University in Cairo.
Notable individuals with the surname SHEMON include:
1. Patriarch Ignatius Michael III SHEMON (1744-1828), the Patriarch of the Syriac Orthodox Church in Antioch from 1782 to 1828.
2. Joseph SHEMON (1825-1894), a Lebanese-American writer and journalist who founded the first Arabic newspaper in the United States, "Kawkab Amrika."
3. Najeeb SHEMON (1883-1959), a prominent Lebanese poet and playwright known for his contributions to the nahda, or the Arab literary renaissance, in the early 20th century.
4. Elias SHEMON (1907-1988), a Lebanese-American businessman and philanthropist who established the Shemon Foundation, which supports educational and cultural initiatives in Lebanon.
5. Muna SHEMON (born 1962), a contemporary Lebanese artist whose works have been exhibited in galleries and museums around the world, known for her abstract paintings and installations.
While the surname SHEMON has its roots in the Middle East, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and diaspora communities. However, its origins and historical significance remain closely tied to the rich cultural heritage of the Levant region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Shemon
Among Census respondents with the surname Shemon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Shemon 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 Shemon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.4% · 108
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Shemon
Shemon 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
#140,157
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
+19 bearers (+19.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,279 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-7 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,797 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #150,436 | 100 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #140,157 | 119 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+19.0%) | Up 10,279 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 7,797 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 Shemon 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 | #140,157 | #147,954 | -5.6% |
| Count | 119 | 112 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Shemon bearers went from 119 to 112 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 7,797 positions in the national ranking, going from #140,157 to #147,954.
FAQ
Shemon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Shemon?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Shemon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Shemon?
Shemon ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Shemon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Shemon.
Has Shemon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Shemon went from 119 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #140,157 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Shemon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Shemon, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.8%) and Hispanic (0.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Shemon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.4% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Shemon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.4%), Two or More Races (1.8%), Hispanic (0.9%). 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 Shemon (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 Shemon mean?
A Jewish surname derived from the Hebrew "Shim'on" meaning "he has heard" or "he has listened". 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 Shemon (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 Shemon?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.