Phạm is the fourth most common Vietnamese family name. But other Asian groups also have Phams.
Phạm is the Sino-Vietnamese reading of the Chinese character 范. The same character is used to write the Chinese surname Fan and the Korean surname Beom (범). As with other East Asian surnames derived from Chinese, it does not necessarily imply familial relations with those sharing the same surname. The surname Phạm means "iron" in Vietnamese.
Although Phạm is not as common a surname among Vietnamese populations as Nguyễn, it remains prevalent. Among the global ethnic Vietnamese population, it is the 5th most common name accounting for 5% of the total 75 million. In the United States, Phạm is the #1455 most common last name comprising about 0.008% of all last names. It is the 951st most common in France with 5,509 persons sharing that name. It is ranked 943rd in the United States Social Security Index.
Notable people with the surname Phạm include:
SciencePhạm Tuân, first Vietnamese cosmonaut and the first Asian in spaceFrédéric Pham, Vietnamese French mathematician (ref. Brieskorn–Pham manifold)Politics and MilitaryPhạm Công Trứ, mandarin of the Le and Trinh dynastiesPhạm Ngũ Lão, prominent general under Trần Hưng ĐạoPhạm Văn Đồng Prime Minister of North Vietnam (1955–1976) and reunified Vietnam (1976–1987)Hung Pham, politician from Alberta, CanadaPham Le Bong, foreign minister to Bảo Đại (last emperor of Vietnam)Phạm Ngọc Thảo, colonel in the Army of the Republic of Vietnam, communist spyPhạm Phú Quốc, Vietnam Air Force pilot in 1962 South Vietnamese Independence Palace bombingPhạm Văn Đồng, ARVN generalPhạm Văn Phú, ARVN generalArts and entertainmentPhạm Duy, composer and songwriterPhạm Đình Chương, composer and songwriterLinh Dan Pham, French actressHoa Pham, Australian authorQuang X. Pham, authorAndrew X. Pham, authorPhạm Thị Hoài, authorPhạm Xuân Thái, Vietnamese linguistPhạm Xuân Ẩn, Vietnamese journalist and communist spy from South VietnamPhạm Xuân Nguyên, pen name Ngân Xuyên, Vietnamese writer and literary translatorKhoi Pham, artist for Marvel ComicsElyzabeth Pham, Miss Wisconsin USA 1999Thierry Pham, professional tennis playerReligious figuresPhạm Công Tắc, first twelve disciples of Cao DaiPhạm Minh Mẫn Cardinal Priest & Archbishop of Ho Chi Minh City in the Roman Catholic Church.Fictional charactersPham Nuwen, the protagonist of Vernor Vinge's Hugo Award winning science fiction series, A Fire Upon the Deep and A Deepness in the SkyPham Tai, protagonist of the 18th century epic poem, Phạm Tải – Ngọc HoaPham Thi La, a character in the Muv-Luv spin-off series Schwarzesmarken.OtherNina Pham, U.S. nurse who became the first victim in the U.S. to acquire the Ebola virus disease through transmission in the U.S. during the 2014 West African Ebola outbreak