Explore the Family Name Rajagopalan
The meaning of Rajagopalan
Indian (Kerala, Tamil Nadu): from a personal name derived from Sanskrit rājagopāla ‘king of cowherds’ (see Rajagopal) + the Tamil-Malayalam third-person masculine singular suffix -n.—Note: Since South Indians traditionally do not have hereditary surnames, this name was in most cases registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US. Some characteristic forenames: Indian Narayanan, Ramesh, Ravi, Aruna, Bharath, Lalitha, Nandini, Raj, Ram, Sanjay, Sridharan, Srikanth.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Rajagopalan in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Rajagopalan has seen significant growth in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the surname ranked 40,265th in prevalence, but by 2010, it had jumped to a rank of 27,164—an impressive increase of 32.54%. The number of people bearing this last name also swelled from 512 in 2000 to 891 in 2010, a phenomenal upsurge of 74.02%. Accordingly, the representation of this surname per 100k population increased by 57.89%, rising from 0.19 in 2000 to 0.3 in 2010.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #40,265 | #27,164 | 32.54% |
| Count | 512 | 891 | 74.02% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.19 | 0.3 | 57.89% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Rajagopalan
In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the vast majority of individuals with the Rajagopalan surname identify as Asian/Pacific Islander. This demographic remained relatively stable between 2000 and 2010, experiencing a slight increase of 0.56 percentage points—from 96.09% to 96.63%. The proportion of those identifying as belonging to two or more races decreased by more than half, dropping from 2.15% to 1.01%. The data also reveals new ethnic identities emerging within this surname group over the decade: while there were no self-identified Whites, and American Indian and Alaskan Natives in 2000, by 2010 these groups accounted for 1.46% and 0.56% respectively. There were no reported Hispanic or Black individuals with the Rajagopalan surname in either census year.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 96.09% | 96.63% | 0.56% |
| White | 0% | 1.46% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 2.15% | 1.01% | -53.02% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0.56% | 0% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |