Explore the Family Name Shiraishi

The meaning of Shiraishi

Japanese: written 白石 ‘white rock’. It is found mostly in west-central Japan and the island of Shikoku. It is also a habitational name from a place in Rikuchū (now Iwate prefecture). Some characteristic forenames: Japanese Atsushi, Hiroshi, Kenichi, Minoru, Ryoichi, Seiji, Toru, Yoko, Yuji, Akio, Goro, Hayato.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Shiraishi has seen a slight decrease between 2000 and 2010. It fell from rank 39,678 in 2000 to 42,378 in 2010, a change of -6.8%. The count of individuals carrying this surname also dropped by 1.73% from 521 to 512 during the same period. Consequently, the proportion of people with the surname Shiraishi per 100,000 population decreased by 10.53%, from 0.19 in 2000 to 0.17 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#39,678	#42,378	-6.8%
Count	521	512	-1.73%
Proportion per 100k	0.19	0.17	-10.53%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Shiraishi

In terms of ethnic identity, the data from the Decennial U.S. Census indicates that most individuals with the surname Shiraishi identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, with a small increase from 83.88% in 2000 to 84.57% in 2010. Those identifying with two or more races also saw an increase of 25.57% over the decade. However, the percentage of individuals identifying as White saw a significant decrease of 41.82%, dropping from 6.72% to 3.91%. There was a small increase in those identifying as Hispanic, from 2.5% to 3.32%. There were no individuals who identified as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.

	2000	2010	Change
Asian/Pacific Islander	83.88%	84.57%	0.82%
Two or More Races	6.53%	8.2%	25.57%
White	6.72%	3.91%	-41.82%
Hispanic	2.5%	3.32%	32.8%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%