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

Youssef, 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 Youssef surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Youssef in America

Youssef is the 8854th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Youssef surname appeared 3,700 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Youssef.

We can also compare 2010 data for Youssef 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 Youssef

The surname Youssef has its origins in the Middle East, specifically in the Arab world. It is derived from the Arabic name Yusuf, which itself is a cognate of the Biblical Hebrew name Joseph. The name Yusuf is of great significance in Islamic tradition, as it was the name of a prophet mentioned in the Quran.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Youssef can be found in medieval Arabic manuscripts from the 9th century, where it was spelled in various ways, such as Yusuf, Yusof, and Youssef. During this period, the name was particularly prevalent in regions like Egypt, Syria, and the Levant.

In the 11th century, the surname Youssef appears in the writings of the renowned Islamic scholar and philosopher, Al-Ghazali (1058-1111), who mentions a contemporary scholar named Youssef al-Baghdadi. This suggests that the surname was well-established in the scholarly circles of the time.

The Crusades, which lasted from the 11th to the 13th centuries, also provide some historical references to individuals bearing the surname Youssef. One notable figure was Youssef ibn Ayyub (1165-1240), a Kurdish sultan who founded the Ayyubid dynasty and played a pivotal role in the battles against the Crusaders.

As the Arab world expanded and trade routes opened up, the surname Youssef spread to other regions, including North Africa and parts of Europe. In Spain, during the period of Muslim rule from the 8th to the 15th centuries, the surname Youssef was adopted by some members of the Moorish population.

Among the notable individuals with the surname Youssef throughout history are:

1. Youssef Kamal (1890-1973), an Egyptian actor and comedian often referred to as the "Charlie Chaplin of Egypt."
2. Youssef Idris (1927-1991), an Egyptian writer and playwright known for his works depicting the struggles of the working class.
3. Youssef Chahine (1926-2008), an acclaimed Egyptian film director and one of the pioneers of Egyptian cinema.
4. Youssef Bey (1835-1909), a Lebanese writer and journalist who played a significant role in the Arab literary renaissance of the 19th century.
5. Youssef Rahi (1938-2005), a Lebanese singer and composer who was a prominent figure in the Arabic music scene.

It is worth noting that while the surname Youssef has its roots in the Arab world, it has since spread to various parts of the globe due to migration and cultural exchange.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Youssef

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

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

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