How common is the surname Benjamin?

40,590 people in the United States had the surname Benjamin in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,606 Americans. It ranked 850th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Benjamin?

H. Jon Benjamin, American actor, followed by Rai Benjamin.

Where is the surname Benjamin most common?

Wikidata records people named Benjamin in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.

How do you pronounce Benjamin?

Benjamin is /ˈbɛnd͡ʒəmɪn/, 3 syllables.

Is the surname Benjamin getting more or less common?

More common. 36,439 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 40,590 in 2010, up 11%.

Is Benjamin also a first name?

Yes. Benjamin is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Benjamin

A Greek patronymic surname, carried by 40,590 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈbɛnd͡ʒəmɪn/ 3 syllables Soundex B525 Also a first name

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Benjamin is more common than 99.5% of them.

Origin

Greek origin

From Late Latin Benjamin, from Ancient Greek Βενιαμίν (Beniamín), from Biblical Hebrew בִּנְיָמִין (binyamīn, literally “son of the right/south or son of days”). Authorities differ on the meaning of the original Hebrew. Philo of Alexandria, the Samaritan Pentateuch The Testament of the Twelve Patriarchs and Midrash Leḳaḥ-Ṭob understand יָמִין to mean "days" (a meaning attested in Daniel 12:13) understanding the name to mean "son of days (i.e. old age)" (compare to the direct translations into Arabic بِنْ يَومِين (bin yawmīn) "son of the days" and Arabic بِنْ يَمِين (bin yamīn) "son of the right hand"), a formula paraphrased in Genesis 40:22 where Benjamin is described as a child of Jacob's old age.

Benjamin is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

One of 45 Greek surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 40,590 people named Benjamin in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 7,606 Americans. That is up 11% since 2000, when the Census counted 36,439.

#850

rank among US surnames

40,590

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+11.4%

change since 2000 (was #868)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#841	Schaefer	41,063	7,519
#842	Walls	41,025	7,526
#843	Trejo	41,021	7,527
#844	House	41,000	7,530
#845	Reilly	40,884	7,552
#846	Pennington	40,854	7,557
#847	Michael	40,736	7,579

Who is named Benjamin

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

49% of people named Benjamin identified as white (not Hispanic), 42% as Black (not Hispanic) and 3.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 49%
Black (not Hispanic) 42%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 3.4%
Two or more races 2.6%
Asian and Pacific Islander 2.5%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.9%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Benjamins

30 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

H. Jon Benjamin
American actor, born 1966
Rai Benjamin
American sprinter and hurdler, born 1997
Shelton Benjamin
American professional wrestler, born 1975
Alec Benjamin
American singer-songwriter, born 1994
Richard Benjamin
American actor and film director, born 1938
Judah P. Benjamin
American politician and lawyer (1811-1884)
Medea Benjamin
American political activist and author, born 1952
Arthur Benjamin
Australian composer, pianist, conductor and teacher, 1893–1960
Frances Benjamin Johnston
American photographer, photojournalist (1864-1952)
Joel Benjamin
American chess grandmaster, born 1964
Tiana Benjamin
British actress, born 1984
George Benjamin
British composer, conductor, pianist and teacher, born 1960

Notable Benjamins come mostly from the United States (22), the United Kingdom (5) and Australia (2).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Benjamin

Benjamin has the Soundex code B525, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code B525.

Other Greek surnames

All 45 Greek surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Benjamin come from?: From Late Latin Benjamin, from Ancient Greek Βενιαμίν (Beniamín), from Biblical Hebrew בִּנְיָמִין (binyamīn, literally “son of the right/south or son of days”). Authorities differ on the meaning of the original Hebrew. Philo of Alexandria, the Samaritan Pentateuch The Testament of the Twelve…
How common is the surname Benjamin?: 40,590 people in the United States had the surname Benjamin in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 7,606 Americans. It ranked 850th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Benjamin?: In the 2010 Census, 49% of people named Benjamin identified as white (not Hispanic), and 42% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Benjamin?: H. Jon Benjamin, American actor, followed by Rai Benjamin.
Where is the surname Benjamin most common?: Wikidata records people named Benjamin in the United States, the United Kingdom and Australia.
How do you pronounce Benjamin?: Benjamin is /ˈbɛnd͡ʒəmɪn/, 3 syllables.
What type of surname is Benjamin?: Benjamin is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Benjamin getting more or less common?: More common. 36,439 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 40,590 in 2010, up 11%.
Is Benjamin also a first name?: Yes. Benjamin is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.