Asian American Last Names

These Asian American last names come from Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Vietnamese, Korean, Japanese and other families, each listed with its meaning, so you can see how varied and how historically layered they are.

237 real surnames with meanings, A to Z.

A

Agarwal

From Agroha, the legendary city of Agrasen

Indian
Aguilar

Spanish, place of eagles

Filipino
Ahn

Korean, peace or comfort

Korean
Amin

Gujarati title from Arabic amin, trustworthy

Indian
Aquino

From Aquino in Italy, via Spanish; prominent Filipino family

Filipino

B

Bae

Korean, from Chinese Pei

Korean
Baek

Korean, meaning white

Korean
Banerjee

Bengali Brahmin surname, teacher from Bandoghati village

Indian
Bautista

Spanish, baptist, after John the Baptist

Filipino
Bernardo

Spanish form of Bernard, brave bear

Filipino
Bhatt

Learned man or scholar, from Sanskrit bhatta

Indian
Bui

Vietnamese Bùi, from Chinese Pei

Vietnamese

C

Cao

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Cao

Chinese
Castillo

Spanish, meaning castle

Filipino
Cha

Korean, carriage or vehicle

Korean
Chae

Korean, from Chinese Cai

Korean
Chan

Cantonese form of Chen, ancient state of Chen

Chinese
Chang

Wade-Giles spelling of Zhang, to draw a bow

Chinese
Chatterjee

Bengali Brahmin surname, teacher from Chatta village

Indian
Chau

Vietnamese Châu, pearl or continent

Vietnamese
Chaudhary

Holder of four parts, a landholder or headman

Indian
Chen

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Chen, to display

Chinese
Cheng

From the ancient state of Cheng or Zheng

Chinese
Cheung

Cantonese form of Zhang, to draw a bow

Chinese
Chin

Taishanese form of Chen, ancient state of Chen

Chinese
Cho

Korean Jo, from Chinese Zhao or Cao

Korean
Choi

Korean, highest or utmost

Korean
Chopra

Punjabi Khatri clan name

Indian
Chow

Cantonese form of Zhou, the Zhou dynasty

Chinese
Chu

From Zhu, vermilion, or the state of Chu

Chinese
Chung

Older spelling of Korean Jeong

Korean
Cruz

Spanish, cross; common Filipino surname

Filipino

D

Dang

Vietnamese Đặng, from Chinese Deng

Vietnamese
Das

Servant or devotee, from Sanskrit dasa

Indian
dela Cruz

Spanish, of the cross; Filipino spelling

Filipino
delos Santos

Spanish, of the saints

Filipino
Deng

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Deng

Chinese
Desai

Gujarati and Marathi, district chief

Indian
Dhillon

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian
Diep

Vietnamese Diệp, leaf, from Chinese Ye

Vietnamese
Dimaculangan

Tagalog, one who is never lacking

Filipino
Dinh

Vietnamese Đinh, from Chinese Ding, nail

Vietnamese
Dizon

Filipino surname, possibly of Hokkien Chinese origin

Filipino
Do

Vietnamese Đỗ, from Chinese Du, birchleaf pear

Vietnamese
Doan

Vietnamese Đoàn, from Chinese Duan, section

Vietnamese
Domingo

Spanish, Sunday or of the Lord

Filipino
Duong

Vietnamese Dương, from Chinese Yang, poplar

Vietnamese

E

Eng

Taishanese form of Wu

Chinese

F

Feng

Mandarin, to gallop

Chinese
Fernandez

Spanish, son of Fernando

Filipino
Flores

Spanish, meaning flowers

Filipino
Fong

Cantonese form of Fang, square or direction

Chinese

G

Gao

Mandarin, tall or high

Chinese
Garcia

Spanish surname of Basque origin, possibly young

Filipino
Gee

Taishanese form of Zhu, vermilion

Chinese
Gill

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian
Goh

Hokkien form of Wu

Chinese
Gonzales

Spanish, son of Gonzalo, battle

Filipino
Grewal

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian
Guo

Mandarin, outer city wall

Chinese
Gupta

Protected, from Sanskrit gupta

Indian
de Guzman

Spanish, from Guzmán in Burgos

Filipino

H

Ha

Korean, from Chinese He, what or carry

Korean
Hayashi

Forest or grove

Japanese
He

Mandarin, what or carry

Chinese
Heo

Korean, to permit or promise

Korean
Higa

Okinawan place name, common in Hawaii

Japanese
Ho

Cantonese form of He; also Vietnamese Hồ

Chinese
Hoang

Vietnamese Hoàng, yellow, from Chinese Huang

Vietnamese
Hong

Korean, vast or great

Korean
Hsu

Wade-Giles spelling of Xu, slowly or gently

Chinese
Hu

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Hu

Chinese
Huang

Mandarin, meaning yellow

Chinese
Huynh

Vietnamese Huỳnh, southern form of Hoàng, yellow

Vietnamese
Hwang

Korean, meaning yellow

Korean

I

Ito

Wisteria of Ise; Fujiwara branch name

Japanese
Iyer

Tamil Brahmin title, possibly from Sanskrit arya, noble

Indian

J

Jain

Follower of Jainism, from Sanskrit jina, conqueror

Indian
Jang

Korean, to draw a bow, from Chinese Zhang

Korean
Javier

Basque, new house

Filipino
Jeon

Korean, complete or whole

Korean
Jiang

Mandarin, river or from the state of Jiang

Chinese
Jin

Korean, from the ancient state of Jin

Korean
Joo

Korean Ju, vermilion

Korean
Joshi

Astrologer, from Sanskrit jyotishi

Indian
Jung

Korean Jeong, upright or proper

Korean

K

Kang

Korean, ginger or healthy

Korean
Kapoor

Punjabi Khatri clan name, possibly camphor

Indian
Kieu

Vietnamese Kiều, from Chinese Qiao, tall

Vietnamese
Kim

Korean, gold or metal

Korean
Kimura

Literally tree village

Japanese
Ko

Korean Go, high or tall

Korean
Kobayashi

Literally small forest

Japanese
Koh

Hokkien form of Xu or Gao

Chinese
Krishnan

Tamil patronymic from Krishna, dark

Indian
Kumar

Son or prince, from Sanskrit kumara

Indian
Kwak

Korean, outer city wall

Korean
Kwan

Cantonese form of Guan, pass or gate

Chinese
Kwok

Cantonese form of Guo, outer city wall

Chinese
Kwon

Korean, authority or power

Korean

L

Lacson

Filipino surname of Hokkien Chinese origin

Filipino
Lai

Cantonese form of Li or Lai, to rely on

Chinese
Lam

Cantonese form of Lin, forest

Chinese
Lau

Cantonese form of Liu

Chinese
Le

Vietnamese Lê, from Chinese Li, multitude

Vietnamese
Lee

Plum tree; common Chinese and Korean surname in the US

Chinese
de Leon

Spanish, from León

Filipino
Leung

Cantonese form of Liang, bridge or beam

Chinese
Li

Mandarin, plum tree

Chinese
Liang

Mandarin, bridge or roof beam

Chinese
Lim

Hokkien form of Lin, forest; also Korean Lim

Chinese
Lin

Mandarin, meaning forest

Chinese
Liu

Mandarin, to kill; surname of the Han emperors

Chinese
Lo

Cantonese form of Luo, bird net

Chinese
Lopez

Spanish, son of Lope, wolf

Filipino
Louie

Taishanese form of Lei, thunder

Chinese
Lu

Vietnamese Lữ or Chinese Lü, surname of an ancient clan

Vietnamese
Lum

Taishanese form of Lin, forest

Chinese
Luo

Mandarin, net for catching birds

Chinese
Luong

Vietnamese Lương, from Chinese Liang, beam

Vietnamese
Luu

Vietnamese Lưu, from Chinese Liu

Vietnamese
Ly

Vietnamese Lý, plum tree, name of a royal dynasty

Vietnamese

M

Ma

Mandarin, meaning horse

Chinese
Macapagal

Kapampangan, possibly one who causes fatigue

Filipino
Mah

Cantonese spelling of Ma, horse

Chinese
Mai

Vietnamese Mai, apricot blossom

Vietnamese
Mak

Cantonese form of Mai, wheat

Chinese
Malhotra

Punjabi Khatri clan name

Indian
Manalo

Tagalog, to win

Filipino
Matsumoto

Base of the pine tree

Japanese
Mehta

Accountant or chief, from Sanskrit mahita

Indian
Mendoza

Basque, cold mountain

Filipino
Menon

Malayali honorific title, possibly accountant

Indian
Mercado

Spanish, meaning market

Filipino
Min

Korean, from Chinese Min

Korean
Mishra

Mixed, a Brahmin title from Sanskrit mishra

Indian
Modi

Gujarati, grocer or storekeeper

Indian
Moon

Korean Mun, writing or literature

Korean
Moy

Taishanese form of Mei, plum blossom

Chinese
Mukherjee

Bengali Brahmin surname, teacher from Mukhati village

Indian

N

Naidu

Telugu title, leader or chief

Indian
Nair

Malayali community name, possibly leader

Indian
Nakamura

Literally middle village

Japanese
Nam

Korean, meaning south

Korean
Navarro

Spanish, person from Navarre

Filipino
Ng

Cantonese form of Wu (吳 or 伍)

Chinese
Ngo

Vietnamese Ngô, from Chinese Wu

Vietnamese
Nguyen

Vietnamese Nguyễn, from a Chinese musical instrument name

Vietnamese
Noh

Korean, from Chinese Lu, black or cottage

Korean

O

Ocampo

Spanish, from Galician o campo, the field

Filipino
Oh

Korean, from Chinese Wu

Korean
Ong

Hokkien form of Wang, king

Chinese

P

Pandey

Learned man, related to Sanskrit pandita

Indian
Pangilinan

Kapampangan, possibly place of the pili tree

Filipino
Parikh

Gujarati, examiner or assayer

Indian
Park

Korean Bak, gourd; associated with legendary founder Hyeokgeose

Korean
Pascual

Spanish, relating to Easter

Filipino
Patel

Gujarati, village headman or landholder

Indian
Peng

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Peng

Chinese
Pham

Vietnamese Phạm, from Chinese Fan, model

Vietnamese
Phan

Vietnamese Phan, from Chinese Pan

Vietnamese
Phung

Vietnamese Phùng, from Chinese Feng

Vietnamese
Pillai

Tamil and Malayali title, child or prince

Indian
Poon

Cantonese form of Pan, water from washing rice

Chinese

Q

Quach

Vietnamese Quách, from Chinese Guo, outer wall

Vietnamese
Quan

Cantonese form of Guan, pass or gate

Chinese

R

Ramos

Spanish, branches, or palm branches of Palm Sunday

Filipino
Rao

From Sanskrit raja, king

Indian
Reddy

Telugu landholding community title

Indian
Reyes

Spanish, kings; common Filipino surname

Filipino
Rivera

Spanish, meaning riverbank

Filipino
del Rosario

Spanish, of the rosary

Filipino
Ryu

Korean, willow; spelling variant of Yoo

Korean

S

Salazar

Spanish-Basque, old hall or manor

Filipino
Sandhu

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian
Santos

Spanish, saints; very common among Filipino Americans

Filipino
Sato

Helper plus wisteria; Fujiwara branch name

Japanese
Seo

Korean, slowly or gently

Korean
Sethi

Punjabi, merchant or banker, from Sanskrit shreshthin

Indian
Shah

Gujarati merchant surname, from Sanskrit sadhu, honest

Indian
Sharma

Joy or shelter, from Sanskrit sharman

Indian
Shen

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Shen

Chinese
Shin

Korean, to state or extend

Korean
Singh

Lion, from Sanskrit simha; common among Sikhs

Indian
Son

Korean, grandson or descendant

Korean
Song

Mandarin, from the Song state; also Korean Song

Chinese
Soriano

Spanish, person from Soria

Filipino
Srinivasan

Tamil patronymic, abode of the goddess Lakshmi

Indian
Sun

Mandarin, grandson or descendant

Chinese
Sung

Korean Seong, to accomplish

Korean
Suzuki

Literally bell tree

Japanese
Szeto

Cantonese form of Situ, minister of the masses

Chinese

T

Ta

Vietnamese Tạ, from Chinese Xie, to thank

Vietnamese
Takahashi

Literally high bridge

Japanese
Tam

Cantonese form of Tan, deep or talk

Chinese
Tan

Hokkien form of Chen; also Mandarin Tan

Chinese
Tanaka

In the middle of the rice field

Japanese
Tang

From the Tang dynasty or ancient state of Tang

Chinese
Thai

Vietnamese Thái, great or peaceful

Vietnamese
Thakkar

Gujarati trading community name, lord or master

Indian
Tolentino

From Tolentino in Italy, after Saint Nicholas of Tolentino

Filipino
Ton

Vietnamese Tôn, from Chinese Sun, descendant

Vietnamese
Torres

Spanish, meaning towers

Filipino
Tran

Vietnamese Trần, from Chinese Chen, to display

Vietnamese
Trinh

Vietnamese Trịnh, from Chinese Zheng

Vietnamese
Trivedi

One versed in three Vedas

Indian
Truong

Vietnamese Trương, from Chinese Zhang

Vietnamese
Tsai

Wade-Giles spelling of Cai, from the state of Cai

Chinese
Tsang

Cantonese form of Zeng, great-grand relation

Chinese
Tse

Cantonese form of Xie, to thank

Chinese

V

Valdez

Spanish, from a valley

Filipino
Verma

Armor or protection, from Sanskrit varman

Indian
Villanueva

Spanish, new town

Filipino
Vo

Vietnamese Võ, southern form of Vũ, martial

Vietnamese
Vu

Vietnamese Vũ, martial or feather

Vietnamese
Vuong

Vietnamese Vương, king, from Chinese Wang

Vietnamese

W

Wang

Mandarin, meaning king

Chinese
Watanabe

Area around the ferry crossing

Japanese
Wong

Cantonese form of Huang, yellow

Chinese
Wu

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Wu

Chinese

X

Xie

Mandarin, to thank

Chinese
Xu

Mandarin, slowly or gently

Chinese

Y

Yamada

Mountain rice field

Japanese
Yamamoto

Base of the mountain

Japanese
Yang

Mandarin, poplar tree

Chinese
Yee

Cantonese form of Yu, surname of an ancient clan

Chinese
Yip

Cantonese form of Ye, leaf

Chinese
Yoo

Korean Yu, willow

Korean
Yoon

Korean, to govern or approve

Korean
Yoshida

Lucky or good rice field

Japanese
Yuen

Cantonese form of Yuan, long robe

Chinese
Yun

Korean Yun, variant spelling of Yoon

Korean

Z

Zhang

Mandarin, to draw a bow

Chinese
Zhao

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Zhao

Chinese
Zheng

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Zheng

Chinese
Zhou

Mandarin, from the Zhou dynasty

Chinese
Zhu

Mandarin, vermilion red

Chinese

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Chen

Mandarin, from the ancient state of Chen, to display

Chinese
Soriano

Spanish, person from Soria

Filipino
Eng

Taishanese form of Wu

Chinese
Mak

Cantonese form of Mai, wheat

Chinese
Dhillon

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian
Gill

Punjabi Jat clan name

Indian

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Many origins behind Asian American last names

Asian American family names come from dozens of languages and naming systems, not one. Chinese, Filipino, Indian, Vietnamese, Korean and Japanese Americans make up the largest groups, and each brought its own rules. A Patel from Gujarat, a Reyes from Luzon, a Nguyen from Saigon and a Park from Seoul all share the label, but their names have entirely different histories. The list above puts them together, with a meaning for each, so you can compare them side by side.

Order is one of the first differences. Chinese, Korean, Vietnamese and Japanese names put the family name first in the home language, and immigrants usually flip that order on American forms. Filipino names already follow the Western order because of Spanish and American rule. Many South Indian families traditionally used a father's or village name as an initial rather than a fixed surname, and Sikh families often use Singh or Kaur, which are religious names rather than family names.

Romanisation and the many spellings of one name

The same Chinese name can appear in half a dozen spellings, depending on the dialect and the era of immigration. Early immigrants were mostly Cantonese and Taishanese speakers from Guangdong, so their names were written Wong, Chan, Lum, Chin and Eng. Later arrivals from Taiwan and mainland China used Mandarin forms, especially pinyin, giving Wang, Chen, Lin and Wu. A Wong family and a Wang family in the same city may well write their name with an identical character.

Korean names show the same effect. The name 이 is spelled Lee, Yi or Rhee, and 박 is Park, Pak or Bak, with Lee and Park the usual American choices. Vietnamese names lose their tone marks, so Nguyễn becomes Nguyen and Trần becomes Tran. When you choose a name for a character, the spelling should match the family's origin and arrival date: a Chinatown family from the 1900s is likely Wong or Chin, a Taiwanese family from the 1980s Lin or Chen.

History that shaped these family names

The Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882 barred most Chinese laborers for more than sixty years. After the 1906 San Francisco earthquake destroyed birth records, many men claimed citizenship and then brought over paper sons, young men who entered the country under the surname of a family they were not related to. Some of their descendants still carry those adopted names, while others have gone back to the surname their ancestor was born with.

The Immigration and Nationality Act of 1965 ended national origin quotas and brought the largest wave of Asian immigration, from Korea, India, the Philippines, Taiwan and later Vietnam and the rest of Southeast Asia. As a result, names such as Nguyen, Kim, Patel and Lee are now among the more common surnames in the United States. For a modern character, any of these fits a wide range of places, from Houston to New Jersey.

Frequently asked questions

Which Asian American last names are the most common?

Lee, Nguyen, Kim, Patel, Wong, Chen, Tran, Park and Le are among the most frequent. Lee is shared by Chinese and Korean Americans as well as many families of European descent, and Patel is one of the most common Indian surnames in both the United States and Britain.

Why do some Asian Americans have Spanish-sounding names?

Most are Filipino Americans. Spain ruled the Philippines for more than three centuries and in 1849 required families to take surnames from an official catalogue, so names like Santos, Reyes and Cruz are Filipino in origin rather than Latin American. Chamorro families from Guam carry Spanish names for similar reasons.

Are Wong and Wang the same name?

Often they are. Wong is the Cantonese spelling of both 王 (Wang in Mandarin) and 黃 (Huang in Mandarin), so a Wong may be related to either a Wang or a Huang. The spelling reflects the dialect of the first family member to be recorded in English, not a different origin.

How should a writer choose Asian American last names?

Start with a specific heritage, a place and a generation rather than a general Asian feel. A third generation Japanese American in Seattle, a recent Indian arrival in New Jersey and a Vietnamese family in Houston will have very different names and customs. Then use the list above to check the meaning and spelling.