Is Nguyen a Common Name?

In the United States, Nguyen is the 38th most-common surname and is shared by more than 437,000 individuals, according to the 2010 Census; it was the 57th and 229th most-common surname, respectively, in the 2000 and 1990 censuses. It is also the most common exclusively East Asian surname.

Why is Nguyen such a common name?

In 19th century, Vietnam was a territory of the French. The French had a large scale population investigation during that period and faced a huge challenge which was that many Vietnamese people didn't have a correct last name. So the French decided to give those people a last name, and they chose Nguyen.

What percentage of Vietnamese are named Nguyen?

Nguyen, a Chinese-based family name used by a royal dynasty dating from around the 11th century, is estimated by some to be used by around 40 percent of the total population of Vietnam.