2000
#82,691
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 212
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Yeoh
A Chinese surname meaning "excellent" or "high quality."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 456 Americans carry the last name Yeoh. That puts it at #55,632 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 751,654 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Yeoh 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 Yeoh with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
456
1 in 751,654
Census rank
#55,632
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
398
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 398 bearers of the surname Yeoh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 55632nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Yeoh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Yeoh
The surname Yeoh has its origins in the Southeast Asian region, with significant prevalence in Malaysia and Singapore. The name is of Chinese descent, particularly from the Hokkien or Teochew dialects, where it is rendered as Yáng in Mandarin. The characters associated with Yeoh (usually 杨 in Mandarin) mean 'poplar tree' or 'willow tree,' pointing to a natural feature or symbolic representation within the culture.
Tracing back to historical times, Chinese surnames often originated from the various ancient Chinese dynasties and were passed down through several generations. The surname Yeoh can be linked to the Yang family, one of the most common surnames in China, which means it dates back to at least the Zhou Dynasty around the 11th to 3rd centuries BC. Variations in spelling occurred due to regional pronunciations and the transliteration methods used when Chinese people migrated to different parts of Southeast Asia.
Throughout history, the surname Yeoh appears in various records and manuscripts. In early Southeast Asian documents, the name might have been transcribed differently depending on the European colonial power governing the region, such as the British in Malaysia and Singapore. Notable is the adaptation of Chinese surnames during the Straits Settlements era in the 19th century, where records would show different Romanizations of the same surname.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the surname Yeoh in modern history involves Yeoh Tiong Lay (born 1930, died 2017), a prominent Malaysian businessman and founder of the YTL Corporation, which played a significant role in the development of Malaysia's infrastructure. His successes brought considerable recognition to the name, linking it to modern industrial progress in Malaysia.
Another notable individual is Michelle Yeoh, born in 1962. She is an internationally acclaimed actress known for her roles in action films and for breaking barriers in the film industry as one of the first Asian actresses to gain significant success in Hollywood. Her career has spanned several decades, bringing attention to the name Yeoh beyond Southeast Asian borders.
Yeoh Ghim Seng (1918–2000) was another significant bearer of the surname. He served as the Speaker of the Parliament of Singapore from 1970 to 1989. His contribution to Singapore’s political landscape marks a historical reference point for the name in the context of governance and public service.
In the academic field, Yeoh Eng-kiong, born in 1946, stands out. He served as the Secretary for Health, Welfare, and Food in Hong Kong and has made significant contributions to public health and hospital management in the region.
Lastly, Yeoh Cheng Han (born 1950), a renowned scientist specializing in ophthalmology, has also contributed notably to medical research, particularly in the field of contemporary treatments for eye diseases. His work has earned international recognition, further situating the surname Yeoh within the annals of scientific achievement.
The surname Yeoh thus has a rich history, crossing geographic, professional, and cultural boundaries, and continues to be associated with notable achievements and contributions in various fields around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Yeoh
Among Census respondents with the surname Yeoh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Yeoh 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 Yeoh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander88.7% · 353
- Two or more races4.8% · 19
- White3.5% · 14
- Hispanic or Latino1.5% · 6
- Black or African American1.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Yeoh
Yeoh 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
#62,359
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 321
+109 bearers (+51.4%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Up 20,332 places
2020
#55,632
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 398
+77 bearers (+24.0%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Up 6,727 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #82,691 | 212 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #62,359 | 321 | 0.11 | +109 bearers (+51.4%) | Up 20,332 places |
| 2020 | #55,632 | 398 | 0.13 | +77 bearers (+24.0%) | Up 6,727 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 Yeoh 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 | #62,359 | #55,632 | 10.8% |
| Count | 321 | 398 | 24.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.11 | 0.13 | 21.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Yeoh bearers went from 321 to 398 (+24.0% change). The surname moved up 6,727 positions in the national ranking, going from #62,359 to #55,632.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Yeoh
FAQ
Yeoh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Yeoh?
Name Census estimates that about 456 living Americans carry the surname Yeoh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 751,654 residents.
How common is Yeoh?
Yeoh ranks #55,632 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 398 people with the surname Yeoh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (456), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Yeoh.
Has Yeoh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Yeoh went from 321 recorded bearers to 398. That is an increase of 77 (+24.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #62,359 to #55,632.
What does the Census say about the background of Yeoh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Yeoh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 88.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and White (3.5%). 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 Yeoh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.7% (353 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Yeoh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (88.7%), Two or More Races (4.8%), White (3.5%). 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 Yeoh (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 Yeoh mean?
A Chinese surname meaning "excellent" or "high quality." 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 Yeoh (0.13 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 have the last name Yeoh?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Yeoh? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.