Common Last Names in Hawaii — No English in Top Three

Top 3 — Hawaii

#2 korean

Kim

Patronymic

7,200 people

1 in every 189 Hawaii residents

Kim (김/金) means gold in Korean and is the most common surname in Korea. Korean immigration to Hawaii began with plantation workers in 1903, and Honolulu's Korean community has sustained the name's visibility for over a century.

#1 korean

Lee

Patronymic

7,900 people

1 in every 172 Hawaii residents

Lee (리/李) derives from the Chinese character for plum tree and is shared by Korean, Chinese, and English families. In Hawaii, its prominence reflects Honolulu's historic Chinatown and the Korean community that arrived as plantation workers after 1903.

#3 japanese

Nakamura

Habitational

6,600 people

1 in every 206 Hawaii residents

Nakamura means 'middle village' in Japanese, from naka (middle) and mura (village). It arrived in Hawaii with kanyaku imin government-contract workers beginning in 1885, settling across Oahu and Maui plantations.

Name origins â€” top 20 surnames

Name origins - top 20 surnames

Name origins — top 20 surnames

Heritage

Plantation Immigration & Pacific Heritage

Hawaii's sugar plantations drove contract labor from Japan (beginning 1885), Portugal (1878), and the Philippines (after 1906). Japanese Americans became Hawaii's largest ethnic group, making Japanese surnames among the state's most frequent. Portuguese families from the Azores and Madeira settled primarily on Maui and the Big Island, giving Hawaii one of the nation's highest concentrations of surnames like Silva and Freitas.

Did you know? Duke Kahanamoku, the Native Hawaiian Olympic swimmer who popularized surfing worldwide, made Kahanamoku one of the most internationally recognized Hawaiian surnames of the twentieth century.

Top 20 Most Common Last Names in Hawaii

Showing all 20 surnames

Tap a name to expand meaning

Lee korean

7,900

1 in 172

Kim korean

7,200

1 in 189

Nakamura japanese

6,600

1 in 206

Smith english

6,200

1 in 219

Smith derives from the Old English smið, referring to a metalworker or craftsman. Its presence in Hawaii grew steadily with American missionaries, merchants, and military families from the nineteenth century onward.

Wong chinese

5,900

1 in 230

Wong (王/黃) is one of the most common Chinese surnames, meaning king or yellow depending on the character. Chinese workers arrived in Hawaii's plantations as early as the 1850s, and Honolulu's Chinatown became the center of Chinese-Hawaiian family life.

Johnson english

5,500

1 in 247

Johnson means 'son of John' and ranks among the most common English-origin surnames in the United States. Military expansion after Pearl Harbor brought large numbers of Johnson families to Oahu, many of whom remained permanently.

Yamamoto japanese

5,100

1 in 267

Yamamoto means 'base of the mountain' in Japanese (yama = mountain, moto = base). It became established in Hawaii through Issei plantation workers from Hiroshima and Kumamoto prefectures who arrived in the late nineteenth century.

Park korean

4,800

1 in 283

Park (박/朴) is one of three dominant surnames in Korea and is derived from a word meaning gourd or plain. Early Korean plantation workers who settled in Honolulu after 1903 established the name's lasting presence on Oahu.

Williams welsh

4,600

1 in 296

Williams means 'son of William' and entered Hawaii with American Protestant missionaries from New England in the early nineteenth century. The name spread further through military and federal government workers stationed on Oahu.

#10

Tanaka japanese

4,300

1 in 316

Tanaka means 'middle of the rice field' in Japanese (ta = rice field, naka = middle). It is especially common on Maui and the Big Island, where Japanese plantation families worked the sugar and pineapple fields through the early twentieth century.

#11

Silva portuguese

4,100

1 in 332

Silva comes from the Latin silva, meaning forest or woodland. Portuguese families from the Azores brought Silva to Hawaii beginning in 1878, and it remains concentrated on Maui and the Big Island where their descendants settled.

#12

Santos portuguese

3,900

1 in 349

Santos means 'saints' in Portuguese and Spanish, often given to families associated with All Saints' Day. In Hawaii, both Azorean plantation families and Filipino immigrants who arrived after 1906 carry this surname.

#13

Jones welsh

3,700

1 in 368

Jones means 'son of John' in Welsh and is the most common Welsh surname. It entered Hawaii with American missionaries and settlers in the nineteenth century and grew through military and civilian employment on Oahu.

#14

Chong chinese

3,500

1 in 389

Chong (鍾/鄭) is shared by Chinese and Korean clan lineages. Honolulu's Chinatown, established by the 1860s, was the anchor of early Chinese-Hawaiian community life where surnames like Chong became well represented.

#15

Brown english

3,400

1 in 400

Brown derives from the Old English brún, originally describing someone with brown hair or complexion. Its presence in Hawaii reflects both early American commercial settlers and the military community that grew on Oahu after the 1890s.

#16

Suzuki japanese

3,200

1 in 425

Suzuki relates to the Japanese word for pampas grass and is one of Japan's most common surnames. Okinawan and mainland Japanese communities on Oahu and Maui contributed significantly to this surname's local presence.

#17

Freitas portuguese

3,100

1 in 439

Freitas refers to lands once associated with a convent or religious house in medieval Portugal. Portuguese families from Madeira and the Azores brought Freitas to Hawaii's Big Island and Maui during plantation recruitment in the 1870s and 1880s.

#18

Reyes spanish

2,900

1 in 469

Reyes means 'kings' in Spanish and is common across the Philippines, a legacy of Spanish colonial naming. Filipino sakadas (contract workers) who arrived in Hawaii after 1906 carried Reyes from the Ilocos region of Luzon.

#19

Rodrigues portuguese

2,800

1 in 486

Rodrigues means 'son of Rodrigo' in Portuguese, distinguishing the Hawaiian form from the Spanish Rodriguez spelling. Like Silva and Freitas, it arrived with Azorean plantation workers in the late nineteenth century and is concentrated on Maui.

#20

Davis welsh

2,700

1 in 504

Davis means 'son of David' and is of Welsh origin. It spread in Hawaii through American missionaries and merchants in the nineteenth century and grew further with the military presence on Oahu following the 1898 annexation.

Local Insight

Uniquely Hawaii

These family names rank far higher in Hawaii than nationally — a direct fingerprint of the state's specific immigration waves.

Kahananui hawaiian

Ranked #450 in Hawaii versus #15000 nationally. That is 14550 spots higher here.

Kahananui is a traditional Hawaiian surname meaning 'the great work' (ka = the, hana = work, nui = great). It is rare outside Hawaii and is concentrated among Native Hawaiian families on Oahu and the island of Hawaii.

Kealoha hawaiian

Ranked #380 in Hawaii versus #14000 nationally. That is 13620 spots higher here.

Kealoha means 'the beloved' in Hawaiian (ke = the, aloha = love). Nearly exclusive to Hawaii, it remains one of the most recognizable indigenous Hawaiian surnames among Native Hawaiian families statewide.

Nakasone japanese

Ranked #600 in Hawaii versus #18000 nationally. That is 17400 spots higher here.

Nakasone is an Okinawan surname referring to a place name, and Hawaii has one of the largest Okinawan-American communities in the United States. Families bearing this name are concentrated in Honolulu and on Oahu.

Freitas portuguese

Ranked #17 in Hawaii versus #1800 nationally. That is 1783 spots higher here.

Freitas is disproportionately concentrated in Hawaii relative to its national presence, a direct result of Azorean and Madeiran workers recruited for sugar plantations on Maui and the Big Island beginning in 1878. Portuguese families with this surname formed close communities that persisted well beyond the plantation era.

Etymology

Hawaii Last Name Meanings: Occupational, Patronymic & Habitational

Japanese Surnames

Japanese immigration to Hawaii began with government-contract workers in 1885 and continued through the early twentieth century. Japanese Americans became Hawaii's largest ethnic group, making surnames like Nakamura, Yamamoto, and Tanaka among the state's most frequent. Many families trace their roots to Hiroshima, Kumamoto, and Okinawa prefectures.

Nakamura (middle village) Yamamoto (base of the mountain) Tanaka (middle of the rice field) Suzuki (pampas grass)

Native Hawaiian Surnames

Traditional Hawaiian surnames are multi-syllable compound words from the Hawaiian language, referencing nature, lineage, or spiritual concepts. They remain concentrated almost exclusively in Hawaii and among the Native Hawaiian diaspora.

Kahananui (the great work) Kealoha (the beloved) Kahanamoku (the canoe house)

Portuguese Plantation Surnames

Portuguese workers from the Azores and Madeira arrived in Hawaii beginning in 1878, recruited as skilled plantation laborers. Their descendants settled primarily on Maui and the Big Island, giving Hawaii one of the highest Portuguese-American surname densities in the nation.

Silva (forest) Freitas (convent lands) Rodrigues (son of Rodrigo) Santos (saints)

East Asian Surnames

Chinese workers arrived in Hawaii's plantations as early as the 1850s, while Korean immigration began in 1903. Surnames like Lee, Wong, Kim, Park, and Chong reflect these communities, with Honolulu's Chinatown serving as the historic anchor of Chinese-Hawaiian family life.

Lee (plum tree) Wong (king or yellow) Kim (gold) Park (gourd) Chong (clan surname)

Filipino Surnames

Filipino sakadas began arriving in Hawaii after 1906, recruited primarily from the Ilocos region of Luzon. Under Spanish colonial rule, Filipino families were assigned Spanish surnames, which is why Reyes, Santos, and Cruz appear prominently among common surnames in Hawaii.

Santos (saints) Reyes (kings) Cruz (cross)

Quick Answers

What are the most common last names in Hawaii?

The most common last names in Hawaii include Lee, Wong, Kim, Smith, and other East Asian surnames such as Nakamura and Yamamoto. Hawaii stands apart from most states because Asian surnames dominate the top of the statewide list.

Why are there so many Japanese surnames in Hawaii?

Japanese immigration to Hawaii began in 1885 with government-contract laborers recruited for the sugar plantations. By the mid-twentieth century, Japanese Americans were Hawaii's largest ethnic group, which is why surnames like Nakamura, Yamamoto, and Tanaka rank among the most popular last names in Hawaii today.

What are some traditional Native Hawaiian surnames?

Traditional Native Hawaiian surnames include names such as Kealoha, Kahananui, and Kahanamoku. These names are strongly associated with Hawaii because they come directly from the Hawaiian language rather than from later immigrant communities.

Sources

U.S. Census Bureau — Frequently Occurring Surnames — 2010 Census surname frequency data — primary source for all counts, ratios, and rankings
University of Hawaii — Center for Oral History, Plantation Village Interviews — Oral history records documenting Japanese, Portuguese, Filipino, and Korean plantation community settlement patterns in Hawaii

Information is cross-referenced with official state archives.

#1 Surname: Lee
People named #1: 7,900
1 in every: 172 residents
Top origin: Japanese
State population: 1,360,301
Census year: 2010

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Most Common Last Names in Hawaii

Plantation Immigration & Pacific Heritage

Top 20 Most Common Last Names in Hawaii

Uniquely Hawaii