2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Abeytia
A Basque surname derived from the village of Abaitua, meaning "the lower ford" or "place down the ford."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Abeytia. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Abeytia surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Abeytia in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Abeytia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.7%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Abeytia
The surname Abeytia is of Spanish origin, originating in the Basque region of Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Basque word "abetxi," which means "small fir tree" or "small pine tree." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a fir or pine forest or worked with these types of trees.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Abeytia can be found in the 14th century records of the town of Hernani, located in the Basque province of Gipuzkoa. A document from 1387 mentions a certain Lope de Abeytia, who was a local landowner and farmer.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various Spanish colonial records from the Americas, indicating that individuals bearing the surname Abeytia were among the early Spanish settlers in the New World. For example, a Juan de Abeytia is mentioned in a 1563 document from the Spanish colony of Nueva Galicia (present-day western Mexico).
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Abeytia family became prominent in the region of New Mexico, which was then part of the Spanish Viceroyalty of New Spain. Notable individuals from this period include Bartolomé de Abeytia (c. 1630-1703), a Spanish soldier and explorer who played a role in the founding of several settlements in present-day New Mexico.
Another notable figure is Antonio de Abeytia y Carvajal (1688-1755), who served as the governor of the Spanish province of Nuevo México from 1748 to 1754. He was involved in various conflicts with Native American tribes and efforts to expand Spanish control in the region.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals with the Abeytia surname was Francisco Abeytia (1904-1991), a Mexican artist known for his paintings and murals depicting scenes from Mexican history and culture. He studied under the renowned Mexican muralist Diego Rivera and was part of the Mexican Muralist Movement of the 1920s and 1930s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Abeytia
Among Census respondents with the surname Abeytia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.7%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Abeytia bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Abeytia surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino82.7% · 91
- White11.8% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native4.5% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Abeytia
Abeytia appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+5 bearers (+4.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,434 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-2 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,193 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | +5 bearers (+4.7%) | Down 4,434 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 2,193 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Abeytia surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #147,253 | #149,446 | -1.5% |
| Count | 112 | 110 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Abeytia bearers went from 112 to 110 (-1.8% change). The surname moved down 2,193 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #149,446.
FAQ
Abeytia surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Abeytia?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Abeytia. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Abeytia?
Abeytia ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Abeytia. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Abeytia.
Has Abeytia become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Abeytia went from 112 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Abeytia?
Among Census respondents with the surname Abeytia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.7%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (4.5%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Abeytia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.7% (91 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Abeytia appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (82.7%), White (11.8%), American Indian/Alaska Native (4.5%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Abeytia (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Abeytia mean?
A Basque surname derived from the village of Abaitua, meaning "the lower ford" or "place down the ford." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Abeytia (0.04 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Abeytia?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Abeytia on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.