Explore the Family Name Sama

The meaning of Sama

1. Italian (southern; Samà): from the Greek personal name Samas, from the Biblical name Shimeah. 2. Catalan (Samà): habitational name from Samà, a place in Catalonia (Spain). 3. Asturian-Leonese: habitational name from any of various places in Asturias (Spain) named Sama. 4. Indian (Gujarat): Rajput name of unexplained etymology. The Samas are believed to be an offshoot of the Jadeja tribe. 5. Japanese: written phonetically 佐満. The name appears to be topographic, deriving from the word 狭い semai ‘narrow’. It is not common in Japan. Some characteristic forenames: Italian Antonio, Angelo, Carlo, Salvatore, Dante, Natale, Pasquale, Rocco, Romolo, Saverio. Indian Madhukar, Murthy, Rahm, Sanjay, Shakti, Venugopal. Spanish Digna, Lourdes, Mario, Miguel, Modesta, Orlando, Roberto, Rolando, Serafina, Violeta.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Sama has risen over a decade. In 2000, Sama was ranked at 33,425 in terms of popularity which improved to 28,049 in 2010, showing an increase by 16.08%. The count of individuals with the Sama surname also saw a significant growth from 644 in 2000 to 854 in 2010, a rise of 32.61%. Similarly, the proportion of people named Sama per 100,000 increased by 20.83%, from 0.24 in 2000 to 0.29 in 2010.

20002010Change
Rank#33,425#28,04916.08%
Count64485432.61%
Proportion per 100k0.240.2920.83%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sama

When it comes to ethnic identity, again based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, there have been noticeable shifts among those with the Sama surname between 2000 and 2010. The number of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander increased by 34.29%, while those identifying as Black surged dramatically by 86.69%. However, some decreases were also seen. The percentage of Sama's identifying as White dropped by 23.29%, while those identifying as Hispanic fell slightly by 9.39%. Individuals reporting as two or more races declined significantly by 54.84%. There was no recorded American Indian and Alaskan Native population in 2000, but a small population appeared in 2010.

20002010Change
White54.35%41.69%-23.29%
Asian/Pacific Islander17.7%23.77%34.29%
Black9.47%17.68%86.69%
Hispanic16.93%15.34%-9.39%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0.82%0%
Two or More Races1.55%0.7%-54.84%