2000
#18,278
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,400
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.52
Rare Last name
Saha
A surname of Hindi origin meaning "tolerant" or "patient."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,253 Americans carry the last name Saha. That puts it at #7,057 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 65,249 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Saha surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Saha with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.3K
1 in 65,249
Census rank
#7,057
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,581 bearers of the surname Saha in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7057th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Saha, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.1%. The next largest groups are White (5.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Saha
The surname SAHA is of Indian origin, derived from the Sanskrit word 'saha' meaning 'capable' or 'enduring'. It is believed to have originated as a title or occupational name for someone who possessed strength or fortitude.
The earliest known use of the name SAHA dates back to the 16th century in Bengal, where it was commonly found among Hindu Brahmin families. It is likely that the name spread to other parts of India through migration and trade.
In the 17th century, the name SAHA appeared in various records and manuscripts, including land ownership documents and religious texts. One notable reference is in the writings of the Bengali poet and philosopher Ramprasad Saha, who lived from 1718 to 1775.
The name SAHA has undergone several spelling variations over time, including Sahay, Saho, and Sahu. These variations are often seen in different regions of India and can be attributed to regional dialects and linguistic influences.
Several prominent individuals have borne the surname SAHA throughout history. One of the earliest recorded was Lakhsman Saha, a 16th-century Bengali merchant and trader who established trade routes between Bengal and other parts of India.
In the 19th century, Jogendra Chandra Saha (1833-1907) was a renowned Bengali author and playwright who made significant contributions to Bengali literature. Asutosh Saha (1863-1949), a distinguished physicist and mathematician, is credited with formulating the Saha ionization equation, which describes the behavior of atoms in stellar atmospheres.
During the Indian independence movement, Shyama Prasad Saha (1901-1976) was a prominent political leader and the founder of the Bharatiya Jana Sangh, a precursor to the present-day Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
In more recent times, Samir Kumar Saha (1924-2015) was an acclaimed Bengali novelist and academic, known for his works exploring the socio-cultural landscape of Bengal.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Saha
Among Census respondents with the surname Saha, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.1%. The next largest groups are White (5.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Saha bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Saha surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander89.1% · 4,081
- White5.9% · 272
- Two or more races2.3% · 107
- Black or African American1.2% · 56
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 48
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Saha
Saha appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#11,781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,660
+1,260 bearers (+90.0%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 6,497 places
2020
#7,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,581
+1,921 bearers (+72.2%)
Per 100,000 1.53
Rank movement Up 4,724 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,278 | 1,400 | 0.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,781 | 2,660 | 0.90 | +1,260 bearers (+90.0%) | Up 6,497 places |
| 2020 | #7,057 | 4,581 | 1.53 | +1,921 bearers (+72.2%) | Up 4,724 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Saha surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #11,781 | #7,057 | 40.1% |
| Count | 2,660 | 4,581 | 72.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 1.53 | 70.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Saha bearers went from 2,660 to 4,581 (+72.2% change). The surname moved up 4,724 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,781 to #7,057.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Saha
FAQ
Saha surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Saha?
Name Census estimates that about 5,253 living Americans carry the surname Saha. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 65,249 residents.
How common is Saha?
Saha ranks #7,057 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,581 people with the surname Saha. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,253), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Saha.
Has Saha become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Saha went from 2,660 recorded bearers to 4,581. That is an increase of 1,921 (+72.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,781 to #7,057.
What does the Census say about the background of Saha?
Among Census respondents with the surname Saha, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 89.1%. The next largest groups are White (5.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Saha in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (4,081 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Saha appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (89.1%), White (5.9%), Two or More Races (2.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Saha (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Saha mean?
A surname of Hindi origin meaning "tolerant" or "patient." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Saha (1.53 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How common is the surname Saha?
Find out how common the surname Saha is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.