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

Yuen, 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 Yuen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Yuen in America

Yuen is the 4614th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Yuen surname appeared 7,688 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Yuen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Yuen 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 Yuen

The surname Yuen has its origins in China, dating back to the Han Dynasty (202 BC - 220 AD). It is a romanized form of the Chinese characters 袁, which can be traced back to the ancient Chinese state of Yan during the Zhou Dynasty (1046 BC - 256 BC).

The Yuen surname is believed to have originated from the family name of the ancient Yan nobles and rulers, who held significant power and influence in the region now known as Hebei province. The characters 袁 were initially used as a title or designation for these nobles before becoming a hereditary surname.

During the Tang Dynasty (618 - 907 AD), the Yuen surname gained prominence with the rise of the Yuwen clan, a prominent aristocratic family that produced several influential officials and military leaders. One notable figure was Yuwen Kai (557 - 612 AD), a powerful warlord and the first ruler of the Sui Dynasty's short-lived rival state, the Sui Dynasty.

In ancient Chinese records and manuscripts, such as the Tang Huiyao (a collection of administrative documents from the Tang Dynasty), the Yuen surname is mentioned in connection with various historical figures and events. For instance, Yuen Jingping (665 - 737 AD), a renowned Tang Dynasty scholar and calligrapher, is celebrated for his contributions to Chinese literature and art.

The earliest known written record of the Yuen surname can be found in the Book of Han, a historical text compiled during the Eastern Han Dynasty (25 - 220 AD). This work mentions individuals with the Yuen surname serving as officials and scholars during that period.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the Yuen surname, including Yuen Ying-wan (1636 - 1704 AD), a renowned Qing Dynasty painter and calligrapher; Yuen Mei (1623 - 1697 AD), a prominent Confucian scholar and philosopher; Yuen Shu (1144 - 1229 AD), a Southern Song Dynasty military leader and strategist; Yuen Zhongxue (1574 - 1646 AD), a Ming Dynasty philosopher and writer; and Yuen Shikai (1859 - 1916 AD), a influential military leader and the first formal president of the Republic of China.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Yuen

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Yuen, please contact us.

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