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Tanabe Family History

Tanabe Name Meaning

Japanese: written 田辺 ‘side of the rice paddy’. It is found mostly in western Japan. The ancient pronunciation was 田部 Tanobe and meant ‘rice paddy guild’ denoting a group charged with care of the emperor's fields. Listed in the Shinsen shōjiroku.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Tanaka, Takagi, Watanabe, Tagawa, Lagace, Tabb, Taube, Knabe, Andre

Search for a relative to learn more about your family history.

Hint: Try searching for a relative alive in 1940.

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Where is the Tanabe family from?

You can see how Tanabe families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Tanabe family name was found in the USA, and Canada between 1911 and 1920. The most Tanabe families were found in USA in 1920. In 1920 there were 35 Tanabe families living in California. This was about 34% of all the recorded Tanabe's in USA. California had the highest population of Tanabe families in 1920.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Tanabe surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Tanabe ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Farm Laborer were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Tanabe. 20% of Tanabe men worked as a Farmer and 18% of Tanabe women worked as a Farm Laborer. Some less common occupations for Americans named Tanabe were Proprietor and Helper. .

View Census Data for Tanabe | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    20%
  • Laborer
    16%
  • Salesman
    10%
  • Proprietor
    7%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Farm Laborer
    18%
  • Proprietor
    9%
  • Maid
    9%
  • Helper
    6%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Tanabe family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1,000 census records available for the last name Tanabe. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Tanabe census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Tanabe

Passenger Lists

There are 4,000 immigration records available for the last name Tanabe. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

View all Tanabe immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 936 military records available for the last name Tanabe. For the veterans among your Tanabe ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Tanabe military records

You've only scratched the surface of Tanabe family history

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What is the average Tanabe lifespan?

Between 1954 and 2004, in the United States, Tanabe life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1962, and highest in 2002. The average life expectancy for Tanabe in 1954 was 53, and 82 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Tanabe

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