2000
#24,807
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 942
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.35
Rare Last name
Sugimoto
A Japanese surname derived from sugi (cedar tree) and moto (origin/source), referring to an ancestral home or origin near cedar trees.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,033 Americans carry the last name Sugimoto. That puts it at #28,202 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 331,805 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sugimoto 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
1.0K
1 in 331,805
Census rank
#28,202
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
901
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 901 bearers of the surname Sugimoto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 28202nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sugimoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and White (6.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sugimoto
The surname Sugimoto is of Japanese origin and can be traced back to the medieval period in Japan, around the 12th-16th centuries. It is believed to have originated in the Kansai region, particularly in the areas of Osaka and Kyoto.
The name Sugimoto is derived from the Japanese words "sugi" meaning Japanese cedar or cryptomeria tree, and "moto" meaning origin or source. This suggests that the name may have been associated with individuals who lived near or worked with cedar trees or were involved in the cedar logging industry.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the Sugimoto surname can be found in historical documents and records from the Muromachi period (1336-1573). However, there are no known references to the name in significant historical manuscripts like the Kojiki or Nihon Shoki.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Sugimoto surname was Sugimoto Nobuyoshi, a samurai who lived during the late 16th century and served under the powerful Tokugawa Shogunate. Another notable figure was Sugimoto Sonoko, a renowned Noh performer and teacher who lived in the Edo period (1603-1868).
In the 19th century, Sugimoto Kogyo was a prominent businessman and industrialist who founded the Sugimoto Textile Company, which played a significant role in the modernization of Japan's textile industry.
During the Meiji era (1868-1912), Sugimoto Naojiro was a respected educator and principal of the prestigious Tokyo Higher Normal School, which later became the University of Tsukuba.
Another notable figure was Sugimoto Hiroshi, a renowned photographer born in 1948, whose works exploring concepts of time and memory have been widely exhibited and celebrated around the world.
While the Sugimoto surname is relatively common in Japan, it has also been carried by individuals of Japanese descent living abroad, particularly in countries like the United States, Canada, and Brazil.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sugimoto
Among Census respondents with the surname Sugimoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and White (6.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Sugimoto 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 Sugimoto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander79.7% · 718
- Two or more races10.3% · 93
- White6.2% · 56
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 29
- Black or African American0.6% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sugimoto
Sugimoto 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
#25,684
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 960
+18 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.33
Rank movement Down 877 places
2020
#28,202
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 901
-59 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.30
Rank movement Down 2,518 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #24,807 | 942 | 0.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #25,684 | 960 | 0.33 | +18 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 877 places |
| 2020 | #28,202 | 901 | 0.30 | -59 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 2,518 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 Sugimoto 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 | #25,684 | #28,202 | -9.8% |
| Count | 960 | 901 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.33 | 0.30 | -8.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sugimoto bearers went from 960 to 901 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 2,518 positions in the national ranking, going from #25,684 to #28,202.
FAQ
Sugimoto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sugimoto?
Name Census estimates that about 1,033 living Americans carry the surname Sugimoto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 331,805 residents.
How common is Sugimoto?
Sugimoto ranks #28,202 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.30 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 901 people with the surname Sugimoto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,033), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.30 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 Sugimoto.
Has Sugimoto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sugimoto went from 960 recorded bearers to 901. That is a decrease of 59 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #25,684 to #28,202.
What does the Census say about the background of Sugimoto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sugimoto, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 79.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (10.3%) and White (6.2%). 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 Sugimoto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.7% (718 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sugimoto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (79.7%), Two or More Races (10.3%), White (6.2%). 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 Sugimoto (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 Sugimoto mean?
A Japanese surname derived from sugi (cedar tree) and moto (origin/source), referring to an ancestral home or origin near cedar trees. 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 Sugimoto (0.30 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 are called Sugimoto?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Sugimoto at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.