Explore the Family Name Murayama

The meaning of Murayama

Japanese: written 村山 ‘the mountain near the village’. It is more common in eastern Japan and the Ryūkyū Islands. Listed in the Shinsen shōjiroku. Some characteristic forenames: Japanese Atsuko, Takashi, Kaoru, Kei, Kohei, Masaaki, Masao, Noritaka, Akihiko, Akiko, Atsuhiko, Chikako.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname 'Murayama' showed a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. Ranked 46,614th in 2000, it fell to 50,960th in 2010, representing a drop of 9.32%. Similarly, the count of individuals bearing the name also decreased, with 430 recorded instances in 2000 dropping by 4.88% to 409 in 2010. The proportion of people with this surname per 100,000 also saw a decline of 12.5%, indicating that fewer people carry the Murayama name as time progresses.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#46,614	#50,960	-9.32%
Count	430	409	-4.88%
Proportion per 100k	0.16	0.14	-12.5%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Murayama

Regarding ethnic identity, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census shows some shifts within the decade. The majority of people with the Murayama surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, although this group saw a decrease of 8.56%, from 89.3% in 2000 to 81.66% in 2010. Meanwhile, there was significant growth in individuals identifying with two or more races, increasing by an impressive 173.35% from 3.49% to 9.54%. There were modest increases amongst those identifying as White from 4.65% to 5.13% and Hispanic from 2.56% to 3.67%. However, the proportions of Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native individuals remained at zero in both years.

	2000	2010	Change
Asian/Pacific Islander	89.3%	81.66%	-8.56%
Two or More Races	3.49%	9.54%	173.35%
White	4.65%	5.13%	10.32%
Hispanic	2.56%	3.67%	43.36%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%