Explore the Family Name Sumi
The meaning of Sumi
1. Swiss German: nickname for someone with a pleasant personality, or perhaps for a slow, dilatory person, related to Middle High German sûmen ‘to delay, hinder’. Compare Sumey and Summey. 2. Slovenian (Šumi): perhaps a nickname for a noisy person, derived from šumen ‘murmurous, noisy’, or a topographic name derived from dialect šum ‘waterfall’. 3. Japanese: written 鷲見 ‘eagle watcher’, with the characters used phonetically. The name is from a village in Mino (now Gifu-ken). The actual meaning could be 墨 ‘ink’, 炭 ‘charcoal’, 住 ‘residence’, or 角 ‘corner’; all are legitimate surnames, though all are rare. Another variant is 須見, also rare. 4. Japanese: alternate reading of Kaku. History: The progenitor of some of the American Sumis was Hans Peter Sumi from Saanen, Switzerland who lived a few decades in Alsace (now France) and arrived in PA in 1733. The surnames of his descendants were respelled in many different ways, mostly Sumey, Summey, Summy, and Sumy.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Sumi in the United States?
According to the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Sumi experienced a modest increase between 2000 and 2010. Ranked at 58,397 in 2000, it rose slightly to 58,042 in 2010, which represents a change of 0.61%. The count of individuals with this surname also saw an upward trend, from 325 in 2000 to 350 in 2010, marking an increase of 7.69%. The proportion per 100k people, however, remained static at 0.12.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #58,397 | #58,042 | 0.61% |
| Count | 325 | 350 | 7.69% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.12 | 0.12 | 0% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Sumi
As for ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data indicates that the majority of individuals bearing the surname Sumi identify as Asian/Pacific Islander. This demographic made up 59.08% of Sumis in 2000 and saw a minute increase to 59.14% in 2010. Meanwhile, those identifying as White increased from 24.00% to 25.43%, while the Hispanic representation also grew from 5.54% to 6.29%. The percentage of Sumis who identified with two or more races decreased from 8.31% to 6.86%. There were no individuals with the Sumi surname identifying as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 59.08% | 59.14% | 0.1% |
| White | 24% | 25.43% | 5.96% |
| Two or More Races | 8.31% | 6.86% | -17.45% |
| Hispanic | 5.54% | 6.29% | 13.54% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |