The Phan surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 37,836 people carried this name — #918 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 7,790 people counted. That is up 41% from 26,903 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Phan surname
Borrowed from Hakka 潘 (pān).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Phan» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 565 people named Phan.
Most of them — 472 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 24 départements, most often Paris.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
384 people named Phan live in Switzerland.
They live in 15 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 204 people named Phan live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Brussels-Capital.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In Poland’s population register
83 people named Phan have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 824 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 4 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In the Nordic population registers
1,308 people named Phan are counted in Norway, Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Norway publishes only surnames with 200 or more bearers. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Statistics Norway (SSB, ssb.no), table 12891, 2025 — CC BY 4.0 · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Phan in American newspapers,
1862–1943.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 138,834 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Phan,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Phan Huy Cẩn 1722–1789 -
Văn Trị Phan 1830–1910 · poet -
Phan Mạnh Danh 1866–1942 · writer -
Phan Bội Châu 1867–1940 · writer -
Phan Châu Trinh 1872–1926 · writer
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 124 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Phan.
- Pflug 1,055 · U.S. census
- Pfluger 751 · U.S. census
- Pfohl 912 · U.S. census
- Pfrimmer 179 · U.S. census
- Pfund 703 · U.S. census
- Pham 84,320 · U.S. census
- Phelix 175 · U.S. census
- Phenix 1,043 · U.S. census
- Philbert 570 · U.S. census
- Philibert 548 · U.S. census
- Philip 5,832 · U.S. census
- Philipp 1,760 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Phan is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.