Explore the Family Name Yilma

The meaning of Yilma

Ethiopian: from the male personal name Yilma, which is interpreted as e.g. ‘may he be fertile’ in the Amharic language. — Note: Since Ethiopians do not have hereditary surnames, this name was registered as such only after immigration of its bearers to the US.

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

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

According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Yilma has increased in popularity significantly over a decade. In 2000, it was ranked 99,725, but by 2010, it had jumped up to rank 60,636, marking a 39.2% increase. The number of people with this surname also nearly doubled during this period, from 168 individuals to 332, representing a rise of 97.62%. This dramatic shift is reflected in the proportion per 100,000 people, which saw an 83.33% increase, going from 0.06 in 2000 to 0.11 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#99,725	#60,636	39.2%
Count	168	332	97.62%
Proportion per 100k	0.06	0.11	83.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Yilma

In terms of ethnicity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the Yilma surname is predominantly associated with those identifying as Black. There was a small rise in this group between 2000 and 2010, from 85.12% to 94.88%, increasing by 11.47%. While there were some who identified as having two or more races in 2000, this count dropped to zero by 2010. A new addition in 2010 was a small percentage (3.01%) of people with the Yilma surname identifying as White. The categories of Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, and American Indian and Alaskan Native did not register any people with this surname for either year.

	2000	2010	Change
Black	85.12%	94.88%	11.47%
White	0%	3.01%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Two or More Races	13.1%	0%	0%
Hispanic	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%