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

Suman, 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 Suman surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Suman in America

Suman is the 28967th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Suman surname appeared 820 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 Suman.

We can also compare 2010 data for Suman 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 Suman

The surname Suman has its origins in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the region of Punjab. It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is derived from the Sanskrit word "sumana," which means "flower" or "fragrant."

In ancient Indian texts and manuscripts, the name Suman can be found mentioned in various contexts, often referring to individuals from the Kshatriya (warrior) or Vaishya (merchant) castes. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Sikh scripture, the Guru Granth Sahib, where a poet named Suman is mentioned.

The name Suman has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the earliest known figures was Suman Rishi, a renowned Sanskrit scholar and poet who lived in the 12th century. He is credited with writing several literary works, including the Navaratna, a collection of nine poetic gems.

Another prominent individual with the surname Suman was Suman Lal, a 17th-century poet and author from the Mughal Empire. He wrote extensively in Persian and is known for his works such as the Tazkira-e-Shuara, a biographical dictionary of poets.

In the 19th century, Suman Singh Bhandari was a prominent figure in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 against the British East India Company. He was a military commander who fought against the British forces in the region of Avadh (now part of Uttar Pradesh).

More recently, Suman Kalyanpur was a renowned Hindustani classical vocalist and Padma Shri awardee from India, born in 1937. She was known for her contributions to the Khayal and Thumri genres of Indian classical music.

In the field of academia, Suman Gupta is a notable figure. Born in 1958, he is a distinguished professor of English and Cultural Studies at The Open University in the United Kingdom, with a focus on postcolonial literature and theory.

While the surname Suman has its roots in the Indian subcontinent, it has since spread to various parts of the world, particularly among the Indian diaspora. However, its earliest origins and historical references can be traced back to the medieval period in the Punjab region, where it was initially associated with literary and scholarly pursuits, as well as military and political figures.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Suman

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

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

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

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