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

Umetsu, 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 Umetsu surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Umetsu in America

Umetsu is the 140157th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Umetsu surname appeared 119 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 Umetsu.

We can also compare 2010 data for Umetsu 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 Umetsu

The surname Umetsu originates from Japan, with records dating back to the 8th century AD. It is believed to have derived from the Japanese words "ume" meaning plum, and "tsu" referring to a port or harbor, suggesting that the name may have originated from a location near a plum orchard or grove situated near a port.

Early mentions of the name can be found in the Shoku Nihongi, an early Japanese chronicle completed in 797 AD, where it appears as a family name associated with samurai clans in the Kyushu region. The Umetsu name is also recorded in the Kamakura period (1185-1333 AD) among aristocratic families in the Kanto region around modern-day Tokyo.

During the Muromachi period (1336-1573 AD), the Umetsu family gained prominence as skilled armorers and sword makers, with their works being highly prized by the samurai class. Umetsu Nobutsuna (1504-1582), a renowned swordsmith from Kyoto, is credited with developing the famous "Umetsu-gō" style of sword forging.

In the Edo period (1603-1868 AD), the Umetsu name appears in various historical records, including the Buke Shohatto, a code of laws governing the samurai class. Umetsu Kanenobu (1635-1714), a prominent scholar and advisor to the Shogunate, authored several influential treatises on Confucian philosophy and governance.

The name Umetsu is also associated with several notable figures in modern Japanese history, including Umetsu Kawabata (1886-1952), a respected painter and printmaker known for his ukiyo-e woodblock prints, and Umetsu Mizuno (1910-1991), a pioneering architect who designed several iconic buildings in Tokyo, such as the Nippon Budokan and the Tokyo Prince Hotel.

Umetsu Yukio (1921-2004) was a celebrated novelist and playwright, best known for his works exploring the aftermath of World War II and the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki. His novel "Kurai Toki" (Dark Times) received the prestigious Akutagawa Prize in 1957.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Umetsu

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

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!