# Yi (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/yi/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname from Korean. Equivalent to Chinese 李 (Lǐ)

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Korean |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 17,934 |
| US rank (2010) | 2,011 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 17,216 people |
| Change since 2000 | +18% (15,254 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | not recorded |
| Variant spellings | Lee, Li, Ri, Rhee |

## Etymology

Borrowed from Korean 이 (I) (based on the South Korean spelling), hanja: 李, also spelled 리 (Ri), especially in North Korea.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Yi in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 1.4% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 0.2% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 1.8% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 94% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.0% |
| Two or more races | 2.1% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Yi in Song dynasty, Shu Han and the United States.

## People named Yi

- Yi Yuanji, 11th-century painter (1000-1064)
- Yi Ji, 3rd century Shu Han diplomat, writer and official
- Lo Mutuc, American actor

## Similar surnames

Yiu, Yu, Yee, Yoo, Ye, Yao, Yeh, You, Yau, Yoho, Yeo, Yow.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.