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

Zhen, 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 Zhen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Zhen in America

Zhen is the 8941st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Zhen surname appeared 3,661 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 Zhen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Zhen 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 Zhen

The surname ZHEN is believed to have originated in China, with its earliest recorded examples dating back to the Tang Dynasty (618-907 AD). It is derived from the Chinese character "甄," which can be translated as "to select" or "to choose."

In ancient China, the ZHEN surname was often associated with scholars and officials who had achieved high ranks through the imperial examination system. The name may have been bestowed upon those who were deemed to be among the most exceptional and carefully selected individuals for prestigious positions within the imperial bureaucracy.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the ZHEN surname can be found in the Shijing, also known as the Classic of Poetry, which is one of the oldest existing collections of Chinese poetry and prose from the early Zhou Dynasty (1046-771 BC). This suggests that the name has a long and venerable history, dating back to ancient times.

During the Song Dynasty (960-1279 AD), a prominent figure bearing the ZHEN surname was Zhen Dexiu (1178-1235), a renowned Neo-Confucian philosopher and scholar-official. He was highly respected for his contributions to the development of Confucian thought and his influential writings on ethics and governance.

Another notable individual with the ZHEN surname was Zhen Xuan (1061-1127), a prominent scholar and statesman during the Song Dynasty. He served as a high-ranking official and was known for his expertise in the classics and his contributions to the field of philology.

In the Ming Dynasty (1368-1644), Zhen Dehui (1457-1522) was a renowned Taoist philosopher and author. He wrote extensively on the principles of Taoism and is considered one of the most influential Taoist thinkers of his time.

During the Qing Dynasty (1644-1912), Zhen Guanxi (1842-1922) was a prominent reformer and advocate for modernization in China. He played a significant role in the Self-Strengthening Movement, which aimed to promote technological and military advancements in the face of growing Western influence.

Throughout its long history, the ZHEN surname has been associated with scholars, philosophers, and officials who have made significant contributions to various fields, including literature, philosophy, governance, and social reform.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Zhen

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

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

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