Explore the Family Name Chehab

The meaning of Chehab

Arabic (mainly Lebanon and Syria, also Maghreb): from a French-influenced variant of the Arabic personal name Shihāb ‘meteor, bright star’. It is found among both Muslims and Christians. History: Lebanese Chehabs are the mixed Muslim-Christian family, originally an Arab tribe from the Hejaz which in the 12th century settled at the foot of Mount Hermon in what is now Lebanon. Fouad Abdullah Chehab, a Maronite Christian, was the president of Lebanon from 1958 to 1964.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Chehab in the United States?

According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Chehab has seen a significant rise between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked at 60,083 but jumped to 44,270 in 2010, marking a 26.32 percent increase. The count of individuals with this surname also rose from 314 to 486 during the same period, indicating a 54.78 percent growth. Moreover, the proportion of individuals carrying this surname per 100k population grew by 33.33 percent from 0.12 in 2000 to 0.16 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#60,083#44,27026.32%
Count31448654.78%
Proportion per 100k0.120.1633.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Chehab

The ethnicity associated with the surname Chehab, as per the Decennial U.S. Census data, has shown some changes between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, 81.85 percent of people with this surname identified as White, which increased to 92.18 percent in 2010. The percentage of those identifying with two or more races dropped significantly from 15.61 percent in 2000 to 4.12 percent in 2010. While there were no individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, or Black in 2000, there were small percentages in these categories in 2010, with 1.44 percent identifying as Hispanic and 2.26 percent as Black. No individuals identified as American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.

20002010Change
White81.85%92.18%12.62%
Two or More Races15.61%4.12%-73.61%
Black0%2.26%0%
Hispanic0%1.44%0%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%