Siaw last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Siaw

An archaic British surname possibly referring to geographical location.

Siaw, 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 Siaw surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Siaw in America

Siaw is the 153769th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Siaw surname appeared 106 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 Siaw.

We can also compare 2010 data for Siaw 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 153769 148244 3.66%
Count 106 102 3.85%
Proportion per 100k 0.04 0.04 0.00%

The history of the last name Siaw

The surname SIAW is thought to have originated in the southern regions of China, likely in the Guangdong or Guangxi provinces, during the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644). It is believed to be derived from a dialectal variation of the Chinese word "siu," which means "small" or "petite."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the SIAW surname can be found in the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912) genealogical records of the Xinhui County in Guangdong Province. These records mention a SIAW family that had lived in the area for several generations, tracing their roots back to the late Ming Dynasty.

In the 18th century, a notable figure named SIAW Yat-Cheung (1720-1795) was a prominent scholar and calligrapher from Guangdong. His calligraphic works and teachings were highly regarded during his lifetime and contributed to the preservation of the SIAW surname's cultural legacy.

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Chinese immigrants from Guangdong and Guangxi regions settled in various parts of Southeast Asia, including Malaysia, Singapore, and Indonesia. This diaspora helped to further spread the SIAW surname across the region.

One of the most famous individuals with the SIAW surname was SIAW Khai-Siong (1893-1968), a prominent businessman and philanthropist from Penang, Malaysia. He founded several successful enterprises and was actively involved in various charitable organizations, leaving a lasting impact on the local community.

Another notable figure was SIAW Kai-Kee (1921-2005), a highly respected journalist and author from Singapore. He wrote extensively on Southeast Asian affairs and was a vocal advocate for regional cooperation and development.

In the field of academia, SIAW Hui-Lin (1936-2012) was a renowned linguist and scholar of Chinese languages. She made significant contributions to the study of Chinese dialectology and was widely published in her field.

While the SIAW surname may not be among the most common in the Chinese diaspora, it has a rich history and has produced several notable individuals who have left their mark in various fields and regions over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Siaw

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

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 Siaw was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 7.55% 8
Non-Hispanic Black Only 64.15% 68
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 26.42% 28
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Siaw has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 7.55% 10.78% -35.24%
Black 64.15% 46.08% 32.79%
Asian and Pacific Islander 26.42% 35.29% -28.75%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races (S)% 7.84% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% 0.00% (S)%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Siaw last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/siaw-surname-popularity/.

"Siaw last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/siaw-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Siaw last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/siaw-surname-popularity/.

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