The Yim surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,144 people carried this name — #5,650 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 48,100 people counted. That is up 13% from 5,426 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Yim surname
Borrowed from Cantonese 嚴 /严 (jim⁴) or Cantonese 閻 /阎 (jim⁴).
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Yim» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 35 people named Yim live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in City of Buenos Aires.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
30 people named Yim live in Switzerland.
They live in 4 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Lucerne.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where 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 France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 28 people named Yim.
Most of them — 21 — were born outside France. Those born in France came from 5 départements, most often Seine-Saint-Denis.
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 print
Yim in American newspapers,
1888–1901.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 59,120 pages in all carry the name.
In print
Yim in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1950s.
347 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Yim. The most, 60, date from the 1910s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Victoria, at 1.4 times its expected share.
Articles, by state
Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Yim.
Who carried it
People named Yim,
with a public archive behind them.
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Cheung-Koon Yim 1936–2025 · teacher
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Shawn Yim 1965–2024
Wikidata (CC0) · 19 lives in all are documented under this name.
In the public record
People named Yim,
in the records of 4 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 States115 records
- U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 61
- U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 33
- U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 15
- New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 3
- Sacramento County historic burials 2
- New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 1
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Example: U.S. registration card, 1942 Military record Albert YimBorn 1919. Enlisted 1941; salesperson from Hawaii. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1993, buried at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.
U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) -
Example: U.S. burial record, 1864 Burial record George G. H. YimU.S. Army veteran of World War I. Born 1898, died 1985; buried at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.
U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) -
Example: U.S. alien registration card, 1940s Alien registration Shew YimBorn 1865 in Toishan, China. Entered the United States at Honolulu in 1883. Listed in the U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955.
U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain)
Showing 3 of 115 records for Yim in the United States.
Counts: U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Record of death and interment, Camp Nelson, Kentucky, 1864, U.S. National Archives (public domain); Alien Registration Receipt Card, Form AR-3, photo by Bobjgalindo via Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0).
France5 records
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Example: French death register, 1930 Death record Sovann YimBorn 1928 in Cambodia; died 1997 in Cambodia.
Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
Showing 1 of 5 records for Yim in France.
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).
Canada4 records
- Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 3
- City of Calgary cemetery records 1
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Example: Canadian cemetery Burial record Shing YimBuried in 1997 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 45.
City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. -
Example: Canadian cemetery Burial record Ham YimDied 1949; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.
City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. -
Example: Canadian cemetery Burial record Jay YimDied 1928; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.
City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
Showing 3 of 4 records for Yim in Canada.
Counts: City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).
Australia4 records
- Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 3
- Queensland State Archives indexes 1
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Example: probate petition, 1848 Probate record Joseph To-Shang YimRestauran proprietor of Port Fairy, Victoria; died 1995.
Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: probate petition, 1848 Probate record Alice YimComputer programmer and analyst of Doncaster, Victoria; died 1988.
Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) -
Example: probate petition, 1848 Probate record Alice Chun Yee YimComputer programmer and analyst of Doncaster, Victoria; died 1988.
Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
Showing 3 of 4 records for Yim in Australia.
Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (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).
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Yim.
- Yepez 6,433 · U.S. census
- Yeung 7,782 · U.S. census
- Yi 17,934 · U.S. census
- Yildirim 591 · U.S. census
- Yildiz 678 · U.S. census
- Yılmaz 1,427 · U.S. census
- Yin 6,548 · U.S. census
- Yingling 4,550 · U.S. census
- Yip 6,208 · U.S. census
- Yocum 6,504 · U.S. census
- Yoder 56,410 · U.S. census
- Yon 2,969 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Yim 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.