How common is the surname Desai?

18,638 people in the United States had the surname Desai in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 16,565 Americans. It ranked 1,938th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Desai?

Meghnad Desai, Baron Desai, British economist and politician (born 1940).

Where is the surname Desai most common?

Wikidata records people named Desai in the United Kingdom.

Is the surname Desai getting more or less common?

More common. 13,057 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 18,638 in 2010, up 43%.

The surname Desai

A Gujarati surname, carried by 18,638 people in the United States.

3 syllables Soundex D200

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Desai is more common than 98.8% of them.

Origin

Gujarati origin

Borrowed from Marathi देसाई (desāī, “leader of a village”), or from Gujarati દેસાઈ (desāī). This surname is mostly found in Maharashtra and Gujarat.

One of 18 Gujarati surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 18,638 people named Desai in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 16,565 Americans. That is up 43% since 2000, when the Census counted 13,057.

#1,938

rank among US surnames

18,638

people in 2010

6.3

per 100,000 Americans

+42.7%

change since 2000 (was #2,540)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#1,929	Laird	18,696	16,514
#1,930	Lacey	18,691	16,518
#1,931	Christie	18,681	16,527
#1,932	Pack	18,678	16,530
#1,933	Vidal	18,677	16,531
#1,934	Kiser	18,674	16,533
#1,935	Peoples	18,672	16,535

Who is named Desai

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

94% of people named Desai identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 3.0% as white (not Hispanic) and 2.0% as two or more races.

Asian and Pacific Islander 94%
White (not Hispanic) 3.0%
Two or more races 2.0%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 0.6%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.3%
Black (not Hispanic) 0.3%

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

Famous Desais

1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

Meghnad Desai, Baron Desai
British economist and politician (born 1940)

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Desai

Desai has the Soundex code D200, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code D200.

Other Gujarati surnames

All 18 Gujarati surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Desai come from?: Borrowed from Marathi देसाई (desāī, “leader of a village”), or from Gujarati દેસાઈ (desāī). This surname is mostly found in Maharashtra and Gujarat.
How common is the surname Desai?: 18,638 people in the United States had the surname Desai in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 16,565 Americans. It ranked 1,938th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Desai?: In the 2010 Census, 94% of people named Desai identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 3.0% as white (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Desai?: Meghnad Desai, Baron Desai, British economist and politician (born 1940).
Where is the surname Desai most common?: Wikidata records people named Desai in the United Kingdom.
Is the surname Desai getting more or less common?: More common. 13,057 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 18,638 in 2010, up 43%.