The Yap surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,590 people carried this name — #7,261 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 64,100 people counted. That is up 27% from 3,603 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Yap surname

A Chinese surname from Hokkien or Hakka.

From Hokkien 葉 /叶 (Ia̍p) and Hakka 葉 /叶 (Ya̍p).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Yap» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

59 people named Yap live in Switzerland.

They live in 8 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 14
Bern 11
Geneva 11
Vaud 10
Basel-Landschaft 4
Aargau 3
Basel-Stadt 3
Zug 3

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 the Nordic population registers

78 people named Yap is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 78

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).

In print

Yap in American newspapers,
1921.

Newspaper page from Le Meschacébé carrying the name Yap
Le Meschacébé 1921-05-07
Newspaper page from Great Falls Tribune carrying the name Yap
Great Falls Tribune 1921-01-22

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain.

In print

Yap in Australian newspapers,
1870s–1990s.

354 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Yap. The most, 97, date from the 1930s.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 78
Queensland 73
Victoria 45
South Australia 24
Western Australia 22
ACT (Canberra) 16
Tasmania 13
Northern Territory 2

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Yap.

Who carried it

People named Yap,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Emilio T. Yap
    Emilio T. Yap 1925–2014 · businessperson
  • Manuel Porcia Yap 1900–1966 · Catholic priest
  • Yap Chin Tee 1905–2000 · badminton player
  • Jose V. Yap 1929–2010 · politician

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Yap,
in the records of 5 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States77 records

77 records of the Yap name in the United States
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 27
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 27
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 17
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 5
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Manuel M. Yap

    Born 1909. Enlisted 1942 at Los Angeles, California; driver from Los Angeles County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1988, buried at Los Angeles National Cemetery, California.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Donald Akin Yap

    Born 1931; from Hawaii. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; killed in action 1952 in North Korea.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)
  3. A U.S. Army record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864
    Example: U.S. burial record, 1864
    Burial record Charles T. Yap

    U.S. Army veteran of World War I. Born 1899, died 1983; buried at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.

    U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)

Showing 3 of 77 records for Yap in the United States.

Counts: U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain).

Netherlands13 records

13 records of the Yap name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 8
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 5
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Hong Tjoen Yap

    Died 1952 in 's-Gravenhage, aged 67; "oogarts".

    Open Archives, Haags Gemeentearchief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record King Hwie Yap

    Married in 1937 in Delft.

    Open Archives, Archief Delft (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Population register Boen Lam Yap

    In a population register.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 13 records for Yap in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain); U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Australia5 records

5 records of the Yap name in Australia Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Kim Chong Yap

    Retired of Auldana, Victoria; died 1996.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Joseph Yun Fuk Yap

    Computer systems operator of Glen Waverley, Victoria; died 1980.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Chui Nyuk Yap

    Accountant of Glen Waverley, Victoria; died 2000.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Yap in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Canada3 records

3 records of the Yap name in Canada
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 2
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Gek Ngo Yap

    Buried in 1994 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 62.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Mark Yap

    Died 1995; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Sew Ying Yap

    Buried in 1996 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.

Counts: City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

France1 record

1 record of the Yap name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record King Tik Yap

    Born 1917 in Semerang (Indonésie); died 1990 in Sallanches (Haute-Savoie).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Yap.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Yap 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.

See the Yap volume
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