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

Yocham, 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 Yocham surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Yocham in America

Yocham is the 38902nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Yocham surname appeared 567 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 Yocham.

We can also compare 2010 data for Yocham 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 Yocham

The surname Yocham has its origins in Germany, emerging around the medieval period. The name is believed to be a variant of a more common German surname such as Joachim or Jochum, derived from the Hebrew name Yehoyakim, meaning "raised by God" or "God will establish." These variants were common in areas where German dialects influenced the phonetic spellings of names.

Yocham and its variants were often found in the regions of what is now modern Germany, particularly in Bavaria and the Rhineland. As with many surnames of the time, Yocham would have evolved through oral traditions, with the exact spelling morphing depending on dialects and local linguistic practices. Historical records from these regions often contain various spellings of the name, including Jocham, Jochums, and Yochum.

The earliest recorded examples of the surname appear in village and church records from the 15th and 16th centuries. One of the earliest noted individuals was Hans Yochum, a farmer recorded in the parish register of a Bavarian village in 1523. By the 17th century, migrations and the Thirty Years' War had spread the name to different parts of Europe and North America.

Georg Yochum, born in 1634, was a notable figure arriving in Pennsylvania during the German immigration wave of the late 17th century. He settled in the region that would become known for its German-speaking Pennsylvanian Dutch community and played a role in early colonial society.

Another prominent bearer of the surname was Maria Yocham, who was mentioned in marriage records from 1742 in the Rhineland-Palatinate region. Her marriage to Johann Schneider was noted for the substantial dowry she brought, indicative of her family's probable affluence and social standing in the community.

Jacob Yocham, a blacksmith by trade, appears in Baltimore, Maryland, records from 1789. He is known for his contribution to the local industry, providing crucial services that supported the growing city's infrastructure. By the mid-19th century, records show another prominent Yocham, Friedrich Yocham, a German immigrant who settled in the Midwest and became a farmer. He was born in 1821 and his migration demonstrates the spread of the surname across the United States due to migration patterns.

The Yocham surname appeared in its various forms in numerous historical documents, such as land deeds, birth and death registries, and church records, but never in a prominent national document like the Domesday Book due to its Germanic origins. Each region seemed to adapt this surname to fit phonetic and cultural standards, leading to diverse but related iterations.

Famed Civil War veteran Henry Yocham, born in 1843 and died in 1902, served in the Union army. His valor was documented in several military records and post-war veteran registries. His contributions to his regiment and the legacy he left through his offspring show the perseverance of the surname through American history.

The surname Yocham, although less common today, carries a rich history rooted in European origins and shaped by the migratory and socio-economic dynamics of the medieval and modern eras. These historical narratives and recorded figures paint a vivid picture of its journey through time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Yocham

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

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

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