Explore the Family Name Radu

The meaning of Radu

Romanian: from Radu, a Romanian short form of any of various (South) Slavic compound personal names based on the element rad ‘merry, glad’ (from Old Slavic radъ), e.g. Radomir. Some characteristic forenames: Romanian Gheorghe, Cornel, Nicolae, Petru, Aurelian, Cosmin, Danut, Doru, Dumitru, Georgeta, Ionel, Laurentiu.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Radu has seen a significant increase in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 30,753rd most popular surname, but by 2010 it had risen to the 25,810th position, marking a 16.07% progress in its rank. The count of people with this surname also grew from 715 in 2000 to 954 in 2010, indicating a considerable rise of 33.43%. The proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 also increased from 0.27 to 0.32, which represents a growth of 18.52%.

20002010Change
Rank#30,753#25,81016.07%
Count71595433.43%
Proportion per 100k0.270.3218.52%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Radu

The Decennial U.S. Census also provides insights into the ethnic identity associated with the surname Radu. In 2000, 92.87% of the individuals with this surname identified as white, and by 2010 this percentage had increased to 97.06%. There was also a slight increase in those identifying as Hispanic, from 1.12% in 2000 to 1.15% in 2010. The data reveals that there were no individuals with this surname who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, or American Indian and Alaskan Native in 2000. However, by 2010, 0.73% identified as Asian/Pacific Islander. Interestingly, the percentage of individuals of two or more races decreased significantly from 4.90% in 2000 to 0.84% in 2010.

20002010Change
White92.87%97.06%4.51%
Hispanic1.12%1.15%2.68%
Two or More Races4.9%0.84%-82.86%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0.73%0%
Black0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%