Explore the Family Name Nara
The meaning of Nara
1. Finnish (Närä): habitational name from Närä in Torne Valley in Lapland, named for its location near the rapids (from närä ‘shallow rapids, wide flowing place in the river’). Established as a hereditary surname since the 19th century. 2. Indian (Haryana, Andhra Pradesh): Jat and Kamma (agrarian caste) name, apparently from Sanskrit nara ‘male, masculine’. Nara was the name of an ancient king of Kashmir (flourished c.900 BC). 3. Japanese: from any of several places so named all over Japan, written many different ways phonetically, apparently from a word meaning ‘level’. The famous ancient city of Nara, originally called Heijō no Kyō 平城京 (‘Capital City of Peace’), was built on a level plain and the character 平 hei (also pronounced nara) means both ‘peace’ and ‘level’, so the name could be a pun. The surname is mainly found in northeastern Japan. The best known form is 奈良. 4. Filipino: topographic name from nara, the name of a tree native to the Philippines. Compare Narra.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Nara in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Nara has seen an increase in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Nara was ranked 59,769th in terms of popular surnames and it rose to a rank of 58,182 in 2010. This represents a 2.66% increase in rank. The count of individuals with this surname also increased during this period, from 316 in 2000 to 349 in 2010, showing a significant growth rate of 10.44%. Despite these changes, the proportion of individuals with the Nara surname per 100,000 people in the U.S. remained constant at 0.12.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #59,769 | #58,182 | 2.66% |
| Count | 316 | 349 | 10.44% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.12 | 0.12 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Nara
The ethnicity associated with the Nara surname has also shown changes over the 2000-2010 period. According to the Decennial U.S. Census, there was an increase in the percentage of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and those identifying with two or more races. The percentage identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander grew by 15.23%, from 31.33% in 2000 to 36.10% in 2010. Similarly, the percentage identifying as two or more races saw a substantial increase of 41.89%, although this still constitutes a small portion of persons with the Nara surname. Those identifying as White decreased by 11.79% while the Hispanic category saw a decrease of 9.48%. No changes were observed in the Black and American Indian and Alaskan Native categories.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 49.37% | 43.55% | -11.79% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 31.33% | 36.1% | 15.23% |
| Hispanic | 15.19% | 13.75% | -9.48% |
| Two or More Races | 2.22% | 3.15% | 41.89% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |