2000
#8,424
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,603
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.34
Rare Last name
Yap
A Chinese surname of uncertain origin, possibly referring to an ancient state or place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,010 Americans carry the last name Yap. That puts it at #6,253 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,031 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Yap 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Yap with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.0K
1 in 57,031
Census rank
#6,253
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,241 bearers of the surname Yap in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6253rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Yap, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.1%) and White (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Yap
The surname Yap has its origins in Malaysia and Indonesia. It is believed to have derived from the Malay word "yapak" which means "to spread out" or "to unfurl". The name may have been given to someone who lived near a flat or open area.
In the 15th century, the name Yap appeared in records of the Sultanate of Malacca, a major maritime trading empire in Southeast Asia. The earliest known mention was in a 1412 inscription that listed a court official named Yap Seng Chye.
The Yap surname can also be traced back to the island of Pulau Yap (also known as Yap Island) in the Caroline Islands of the western Pacific Ocean. Historical documents from the 16th century refer to inhabitants of this island using the surname Yap.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the Yap name is found in the "Sejarah Melayu" (Malay Annals), a literary work from the 17th century that chronicles the history of the Malay Sultanate. It mentions a figure named Yap Ah Kong who was a prominent merchant during that era.
In the 19th century, a notable individual with the Yap surname was Yap Ah Loy (1837-1885), a Chinese Kapitan (leader) in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia who played a significant role in the development of the city.
Another historically significant person was Yap Raf (1890-1962), a Malay nationalist and politician who advocated for Indonesian independence from Dutch colonial rule.
During the 20th century, Yap Kwan Seng (1900-1996) was a renowned Chinese-Malaysian businessman and philanthropist who established the Yap Kwan Seng Foundation to support education and social welfare initiatives.
In the field of literature, Yap Sau Yin (1916-1984) was a respected Chinese-Malaysian writer and playwright who contributed greatly to the development of modern Malay literature.
Lastly, Yap Kim Hock (1914-2005) was a prominent Malaysian artist and painter known for his watercolor landscapes and depictions of rural life in Southeast Asia.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yap
Among Census respondents with the surname Yap, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.1%) and White (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Yap 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 Yap surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander83.1% · 4,356
- Two or more races8.1% · 427
- White4.1% · 217
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 176
- Black or African American1.1% · 57
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Yap
Yap 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
#7,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,590
+987 bearers (+27.4%)
Per 100,000 1.56
Rank movement Up 1,163 places
2020
#6,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,241
+651 bearers (+14.2%)
Per 100,000 1.75
Rank movement Up 1,008 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,424 | 3,603 | 1.34 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,261 | 4,590 | 1.56 | +987 bearers (+27.4%) | Up 1,163 places |
| 2020 | #6,253 | 5,241 | 1.75 | +651 bearers (+14.2%) | Up 1,008 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 Yap 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 | #7,261 | #6,253 | 13.9% |
| Count | 4,590 | 5,241 | 14.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.56 | 1.75 | 12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Yap bearers went from 4,590 to 5,241 (+14.2% change). The surname moved up 1,008 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,261 to #6,253.
FAQ
Yap surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Yap?
Name Census estimates that about 6,010 living Americans carry the surname Yap. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,031 residents.
How common is Yap?
Yap ranks #6,253 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.75 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,241 people with the surname Yap. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,010), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.75 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Yap.
Has Yap become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Yap went from 4,590 recorded bearers to 5,241. That is an increase of 651 (+14.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,261 to #6,253.
What does the Census say about the background of Yap?
Among Census respondents with the surname Yap, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 83.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (8.1%) and White (4.1%). 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 Yap in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.1% (4,356 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Yap appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (83.1%), Two or More Races (8.1%), White (4.1%). 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 Yap (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 Yap mean?
A Chinese surname of uncertain origin, possibly referring to an ancient state or place name. 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 Yap (1.75 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 share the surname Yap?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.