Explore the Family Name Krishna
The meaning of Krishna
Indian (mainly southern states): from a personal name based on Sanskrit krṣṇa ‘black, dark’, an epithet of the eighth incarnation of the god Vishnu. Among Tamil and Malayalam speakers who have migrated from their home states it is a variant of Krishnan. — Note: Since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames, the southern Indian name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US. Some characteristic forenames: Indian Gopal, Murali, Hari, Anand, Arvind, Radha, Raj, Rama, Sanjay, Shailendra, Suresh, Vijay.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Krishna in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Krishna has seen a significant increase in popularity between the years 2000 and 2010. The rank of the surname improved from 27,877 to 18,793, reflecting an uptick of 32.59%. In terms of count, the number of people with the Krishna surname nearly doubled, growing by 79.78% from 811 in 2000 to 1458 in 2010. The proportion of people named Krishna per 100,000 also saw a substantial growth of 63.33%, going from 0.3 to 0.49.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #27,877 | #18,793 | 32.59% |
| Count | 811 | 1,458 | 79.78% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.3 | 0.49 | 63.33% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Krishna
Looking at the ethnic identity associated with the surname Krishna during the same period, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals interesting shifts. The percentage of Asians/Pacific Islanders with this surname increased by 6.67%, from 83.72% to 89.30%. However, there was a decrease of 44.37% within those identifying as two or more races, dropping from 8.88% to 4.94%. Those identifying as White also decreased by 34.61%, from 4.19% to a mere 2.74%. Noteworthy is the emergence of Hispanics and American Indian and Alaskan Natives with the Krishna surname in 2010, where they were previously non-existent in 2000. The proportion of Blacks with the Krishna surname decreased slightly by 31.25%, from 1.6% to 1.1%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 83.72% | 89.3% | 6.67% |
| Two or More Races | 8.88% | 4.94% | -44.37% |
| White | 4.19% | 2.74% | -34.61% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 1.44% | 0% |
| Black | 1.6% | 1.1% | -31.25% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.48% | 0% |