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

Veerappan, 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 Veerappan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Veerappan in America

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

The Veerappan 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 Veerappan.

The history of the last name Veerappan

The surname Veerappan originated from the Tamil language spoken in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu. It is believed to have first appeared around the 15th century CE during the reign of the Vijayanagar Empire.

The name is a combination of two Tamil words - "Veeran" meaning brave or heroic, and "Appan" which is a respectful term used for an elderly person or father figure. So Veerappan essentially translates to "brave or heroic father/elder."

Historically, this surname was associated with the warrior and administrative classes of Tamil society. It was common among those who held positions of authority or performed acts of bravery in battle. Some early records mention Veerappan chieftains and tax collectors in parts of modern-day Tamil Nadu during the 16th and 17th centuries.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Veerappan can be found in a copper plate inscription from the Chola Dynasty, dated around 1100 CE. The inscription mentions a village headman named Veerappan who oversaw land grants and tax collections.

In the 18th century, a famous Veerappan was Kattabomman Nayakar (1760-1799), a Palayakkarar chieftain who led a rebellion against the East India Company's rule in southern India. He was captured and executed by the British, becoming a folk hero celebrated for his courage.

Another notable bearer was Subbaiah Veerappan (1949-2004), an Indian outlaw who operated in the forests along the Tamil Nadu-Karnataka border. He was involved in poaching, sandalwood smuggling and several violent crimes before being killed in an encounter with police in 2004.

Other historical figures with this surname include Veerappan Aravanan (1836-1905), a Tamil scholar and linguist, Veerappan Arasan (1893-1968), a freedom fighter against British rule, and Veerappan Palaniappan (1934-2005), a renowned Carnatic musician.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Veerappan

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

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 Veerappan 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.

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Veerappan, 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!