Explore the Family Name Sai
The meaning of Sai
1. Chinese: Mandarin form of the surname 賽, meaning ‘giving thanks to God’ in ancient Chinese: adopted as a Han Chinese surname from different minority ethnic groups in ancient China. 2. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 蔡, possibly based on its pronunciation in the Hainanese dialect, see Cai 1. 3. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surname 佘, see She 1. 4. Chinese: Cantonese form of the surname 西, see Xi 5. 5. Chinese: possibly from Cantonese form of the Chinese name 世 (meaning ‘world’), a monosyllabic personal name, or part of a disyllabic personal name of some early Chinese immigrants in the US. 6. Vietnamese (Sái): from the Chinese surname 蔡, see Cai 1 and 2 above. 7. Vietnamese (Sài): from the Chinese surname 柴, see Chai 1. 8. Possibly also Burmese (Shan): from a title of respect and a form of address for a man, similar to English ‘mister’. — Note: This title is not used as a personal name in Burma, but in the US it might have been in some cases registered (or counted in the census data) as a surname.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Sai in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the Sai surname has seen a significant rise in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Sai was ranked 51,233rd in popularity and rose to the rank of 42,308th in 2010, marking an increase of 17.42 percent. Similarly, the number of individuals with this surname also grew from 382 in 2000 to 513 in 2010, a noteworthy uptick of 34.29 percent. As a result, proportion per 100,000 people with the Sai surname also increased by 21.43 percent during this decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #51,233 | #42,308 | 17.42% |
| Count | 382 | 513 | 34.29% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.14 | 0.17 | 21.43% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sai
The ethnic identity associated with the Sai surname has also seen changes between 2000-2010, as reported by the Decennial U.S. Census. The majority of those with the Sai surname identify as Asian/Pacific Islander, which increased from 62.57 percent in 2000 to 67.84 percent in 2010, indicating a growth of 8.42 percent. However, the percentage of Sai individuals identifying as White decreased by 28.38 percent during this period. Those identifying as Black experienced a slight increase, rising by 1.38 percent. The proportion of Sai individuals identifying with two or more ethnic identities declined by 14.5 percent, while no change was observed for those identifying as Hispanic or American Indian and Alaskan Native.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 62.57% | 67.84% | 8.42% |
| White | 20.68% | 14.81% | -28.38% |
| Black | 9.42% | 9.55% | 1.38% |
| Two or More Races | 5.24% | 4.48% | -14.5% |
| Hispanic | 2.09% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |