Explore the Family Name Shigeta

The meaning of Shigeta

Japanese: variously written, the most common form being 重田 ‘important paddy’. Others are 繁田 or 茂田 both ‘overgrown paddy’, or 滋田 ‘flourishing paddy’. Some forms of the name substitute 太 ‘large’ for the second character.

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

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

Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Shigeta has seen a notable increase between 2000 and 2010. Ranked as the 70,906th most popular surname in the year 2000, it improved its standing to the 65,964th position by 2010, reflecting a change rate of 6.97%. The count of individuals with the Shigeta surname also rose from 257 in 2000 to 300 in 2010, exhibiting an increase of 16.73%. However, its proportion per 100,000 people remained constant at 0.1 over the decade.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#70,906	#65,964	6.97%
Count	257	300	16.73%
Proportion per 100k	0.1	0.1	0%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Shigeta

Shifting focus to ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that there were changes in the ethnic identity tied to the surname Shigeta between 2000 and 2010. Asian/Pacific Islander representation decreased by 12.82%, falling from 87.94% to 76.67%. On the other hand, those identifying with two or more races rose significantly from 7.39% to 13.33%, indicating a substantial increase of 80.38%. There was also a minor increase in the percentage of Whites, moving from 3.89% to 5.67% - an uptick of 45.76%. Interestingly, the Hispanic demographic emerged in 2010, accounting for 4% of the Shigetas, whereas there were none recorded in 2000. The proportions of Blacks and American Indian and Alaskan Natives remained unchanged at 0.00%.

	2000	2010	Change
Asian/Pacific Islander	87.94%	76.67%	-12.82%
Two or More Races	7.39%	13.33%	80.38%
White	3.89%	5.67%	45.76%
Hispanic	0%	4%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%