How common is the surname Arakawa?

1,015 people in the United States had the surname Arakawa in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 304,183 Americans. It ranked 24,608th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Arakawa?

Betsy Arakawa, American pianist (1959–2025).

Where is the surname Arakawa most common?

Wikidata records people named Arakawa in the United States.

Is the surname Arakawa getting more or less common?

More common. 988 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 1,015 in 2010, up 2.7%.

The surname Arakawa

A Japanese surname, carried by 1,015 people in the United States.

4 syllables Soundex A620

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Arakawa is more common than 84.8% of them.

Origin

Japanese origin

Borrowed from Japanese 荒川 (あらかわ, Arakawa).

One of 123 Japanese surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 1,015 people named Arakawa in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 304,183 Americans. That is up 2.7% since 2000, when the Census counted 988.

#24,608

rank among US surnames

1,015

people in 2010

0.3

per 100,000 Americans

+2.7%

change since 2000 (was #23,863)

Who is named Arakawa

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

75% of people named Arakawa identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 13% as two or more races and 6.9% as white (not Hispanic).

Asian and Pacific Islander 75%
Two or more races 13%
White (not Hispanic) 6.9%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.9%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%

Compare: most common surnames among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.

Famous Arakawas

1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

Betsy Arakawa
American pianist (1959–2025)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Arakawa

Arakawa has the Soundex code A620, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code A620.

Other Japanese surnames

All 123 Japanese surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Arakawa come from?: Borrowed from Japanese 荒川 (あらかわ, Arakawa).
How common is the surname Arakawa?: 1,015 people in the United States had the surname Arakawa in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 304,183 Americans. It ranked 24,608th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Arakawa?: In the 2010 Census, 75% of people named Arakawa identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 13% as two or more races.
Who is the most famous person named Arakawa?: Betsy Arakawa, American pianist (1959–2025).
Where is the surname Arakawa most common?: Wikidata records people named Arakawa in the United States.
Is the surname Arakawa getting more or less common?: More common. 988 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 1,015 in 2010, up 2.7%.