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

Tjan, 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 Tjan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tjan in America

Tjan is the 122314th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tjan surname appeared 141 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 Tjan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tjan 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 Tjan

The surname Tjan is believed to have originated in the Netherlands, with its earliest recorded instances dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch word "tjan," which means "gardener" or "worker in the fields." This suggests that the name was initially associated with individuals who worked in agriculture or horticulture.

In its earliest forms, the name was often spelled as "Tjaen" or "Tjanen," reflecting the linguistic variations common in the Dutch language at the time. The name was particularly prevalent in the regions of North Holland and Utrecht, where many families with this surname can be traced back to the 17th and 18th centuries.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Tjan surname can be found in the municipal records of Amsterdam from the year 1612, which reference a certain Pieter Tjaen, a successful merchant and landowner. Another notable early bearer of the name was Jan Tjaen, a skilled horticulturist who gained recognition for his work in cultivating rare and exotic plants in the 17th century.

As the centuries passed, the Tjan name spread beyond the Netherlands, with some members of the family emigrating to other parts of Europe and eventually to other continents. One such individual was Adriaan Tjan, born in 1785, who served as a captain in the Dutch East Indies Company and later settled in the Indonesian archipelago.

In the 19th century, the Tjan surname gained further prominence with the achievements of Hendrik Tjan, a renowned Dutch painter and sculptor born in 1823. His works, which often depicted scenes of rural life and landscapes, are still celebrated and can be found in several prestigious art galleries across Europe.

Another notable figure was Johanna Tjan, born in 1867, who was a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights in the Netherlands. She founded several schools and organizations dedicated to promoting equal educational opportunities for girls and women.

While the Tjan surname may not be among the most common in the world, it has a rich history and has been borne by individuals who have made significant contributions in various fields, from commerce and agriculture to art and education, across multiple centuries and continents.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tjan

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

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

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

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