Explore the Family Name Cham
The meaning of Cham
1. West African (Gambia): variant of Thiam. 2. Vietnamese (Châm): unexplained. 3. Cambodian: written ចម, of Chinese origin (compare below). The surname ចម also corresponds to the Khmer word meaning e.g. ‘highest’ and ‘head’. 4. Chinese: Hokkien or Taiwanese Romanization of the surname 詹, see Zhan 1. 5. Chinese: Cantonese form of the surname 湛, see Zhan 3. 6. Chinese: alternative Cantonese form of the surname 覃, see Tan 2 or Qin 3. 7. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 曾 see Zeng. 8. Filipino: of Chinese origin, see 4 above. 9. Amerindian (mainly Mexico): unexplained. 10. French: habitational name from any of various places called Chalm, often recorded as La Champ, in Ardèche, Drôme, Haute-Loire, Isère, Lozère. The surname is most common in Haiti where it may be of different origin. 11. English (of Norman origin): historically in England this is (or was) a variant of Cain, denoting someone from Caen, Calvados (France). However, in this sense it now seems to be extinct as a surname in Britain. Some characteristic forenames: Southeast Asian Chun, Fei, Heng, Hong, Kam, Roeun, Kiem, Binh, Pha, Tung, Tuyen. Arabic/Muslim Musa, Sheikh, Mustapha, Shahram, Suleiman. French/Haitian Francoise, Hancy, Murielle, Yves.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Cham in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Cham increased in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Cham was ranked at 29,815 but by 2010, it had jumped to 22,791, marking an increase of 23.56%. The count of individuals with this surname also saw a significant rise from 744 in 2000 to 1,124 in 2010, translating to an impressive growth rate of 51.08%. The proportion of the surname per 100,000 people also climbed from 0.28 to 0.38 during this period, marking an increase of 35.71%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #29,815 | #22,791 | 23.56% |
| Count | 744 | 1,124 | 51.08% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.28 | 0.38 | 35.71% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Cham
In terms of ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the Cham surname experienced shifts across different ethnic identities between 2000 and 2010. The Asian/Pacific Islander identity registered a drop from 40.73% in 2000 to 31.49% in 2010. Similarly, the percentage of Chams identifying as White decreased by 35.33%, from 11.69% in 2000 to 7.56% in 2010. However, those identifying as Hispanic saw an increase from 5.91% to 9.43%, a growth of 59.56%. The most significant change was seen among those identifying as Black, increasing from 35.48% in 2000 to 49.47% in 2010, representing a 39.43% increase. The categories of "Two or more races" and "American Indian and Alaskan Native" either remained steady or were suppressed for privacy in the data.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Black | 35.48% | 49.47% | 39.43% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 40.73% | 31.49% | -22.69% |
| Hispanic | 5.91% | 9.43% | 59.56% |
| White | 11.69% | 7.56% | -35.33% |
| Two or More Races | 6.18% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |