Explore the Family Name Mahdavi
The meaning of Mahdavi
Muslim (Iran): from a Persian variant of Arabic Mahdawī, a derivative of the personal name Mahdi, denoting association with the twelfth and last imam of the Shiites. Some characteristic forenames: Arabic/Muslim Ali, Mohammad, Mehdi, Saeed, Alireza, Asghar, Esmaeil, Farnaz, Hassan, Hossein, Iradj, Latifeh.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Mahdavi in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname Mahdavi has increased significantly between the years 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 59,916th most popular surname, but by 2010, it had risen to the 47,791st position, marking an improvement of over 20 percent. The count of individuals with this surname also saw a substantial increase during this period, rising from 315 to 443, which represents a growth rate of over 40 percent. Accordingly, the proportion of people named Mahdavi per 100,000 population also grew by 25 percent, moving from 0.12 to 0.15.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #59,916 | #47,791 | 20.24% |
| Count | 315 | 443 | 40.63% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.12 | 0.15 | 25% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Mahdavi
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data revealed some shifts in the ethnicity distribution among individuals with the surname Mahdavi from 2000 to 2010. The percentage of those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander decreased by approximately 29 percent, while the percentage of those identifying with two or more races declined by about 24 percent. However, there was a modest increase of around 3 percent of individuals identifying as White. Interestingly, the data for 2010 showed that a small percentage (3.16%) of individuals with the surname Mahdavi identified as Hispanic, a category that did not appear in the 2000 data. The categories for Black and American Indian/Alaskan Native remained at zero for both census years.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 81.27% | 83.75% | 3.05% |
| Two or More Races | 15.24% | 11.51% | -24.48% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 3.16% | 0% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 2.22% | 1.58% | -28.83% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |