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

Shimamura, 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 Shimamura surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shimamura in America

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

The Shimamura 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 Shimamura.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shimamura 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 Shimamura

The surname "SHIMAMURA" originates from Japan and is believed to have its roots in the Edo period (1603-1868). It is a combination of two Japanese words: "shima" meaning "island" and "mura" meaning "village." This suggests that the name may have originated from a village located on an island or a coastal area.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "SHIMAMURA" can be found in the "Shinokoku Kochizu," a historical map of Japan created in the late Edo period. This map depicts a village named "Shimamura" located in the present-day Wakayama Prefecture, providing evidence of the name's existence during that time.

The name "SHIMAMURA" has also been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such figure is Shimamura Hayato (1858-1923), a Japanese politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs during the Meiji era. Another notable bearer of this surname was Shimamura Tsuburo (1898-1967), a Japanese painter and printmaker known for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints.

In the realm of literature, the name "SHIMAMURA" gained prominence through the works of Yasunari Kawabata, a Japanese novelist and the first Japanese author to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1968. One of his most celebrated novels, "The Old Capital" (1962), features a character named Chieko Shimamura, whose name reflects the author's interest in traditional Japanese culture and his fondness for the city of Kyoto.

Another individual of historical significance was Shimamura Mitsuo (1892-1988), a Japanese military officer who played a role in the Russo-Japanese War and later served as the Governor-General of Korea during the Japanese occupation from 1936 to 1942.

Lastly, the name "SHIMAMURA" was also borne by Shimamura Nobuyuki (1945-2016), a Japanese businessman and entrepreneur who co-founded the successful video game company Square Enix, known for iconic franchises such as Final Fantasy and Dragon Quest.

While the surname "SHIMAMURA" has its roots in Japan's history and culture, it has also gained recognition internationally through the achievements of its bearers in various fields, from politics and diplomacy to art and literature, as well as business and technology.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shimamura

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

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

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

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