Explore the Family Name Waara

The meaning of Waara

Finnish: old variant of Vaara ‘hill, range of hills’, a habitational name from farms so named. Established as a hereditary surname since the 19th century in Pello of the Torne Valley. This variant is rare in Finland. Some characteristic forenames: Finnish Oiva, Reino, Vieno.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Waara has witnessed slight changes in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it ranked as the 56,687th most common surname but dropped slightly by 1.93% to 57,781st position in 2010. The count of individuals bearing this surname increased from 337 to 352, marking a 4.45% growth over the decade. However, the proportion per 100,000 people remained constant at 0.12.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#56,687	#57,781	-1.93%
Count	337	352	4.45%
Proportion per 100k	0.12	0.12	0%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Waara

On the subject of ethnicity, according to the Decennial U.S. Census, the Waara surname primarily identifies with individuals of White ethnic identity, though it saw a small decrease from 93.47% in 2000 to 91.48% in 2010. Those identifying as Hispanic represented the second-largest group, growing by 11.80% from 1.78% to 1.99%. Interestingly, those identifying as two or more races emerged in the 2010 census, accounting for 3.98%. Individuals identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native decreased significantly by 47.85%, down from 3.26% in 2000 to 1.70% in 2010. No individuals with this surname identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or Black in either year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	93.47%	91.48%	-2.13%
Two or More Races	0%	3.98%	0%
Hispanic	1.78%	1.99%	11.8%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	3.26%	1.7%	-47.85%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%