Find out how popular the last name Alameda is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Alameda.

Alameda, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Alameda surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alameda in America

Alameda is the 16031st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alameda surname appeared 1,809 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Alameda.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alameda to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Alameda

The surname Alameda originates from Spain and has its roots in the Arabic language. It is believed to have emerged during the Moorish occupation of the Iberian Peninsula, which lasted from the 8th to the 15th century. Alameda is derived from the Arabic word "al-munadah," which translates to "the promenade" or "the tree-lined avenue."

In its early history, the name Alameda was likely used to refer to individuals who lived near or owned property along a tree-lined avenue or promenade. These alamedas were common features in Moorish city planning and landscaping, serving as picturesque walkways and gathering places.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Alameda can be found in the "Libro de Repartimiento" (Book of Distribution), a document dating back to the 13th century that recorded the distribution of lands and properties in the region of Valencia after its reconquest from the Moors.

During the medieval period, the name Alameda appeared in various Spanish records and manuscripts, including the "Repartimiento de Sevilla" (Distribution of Seville) from the 13th century and the "Padron de Andalucia" (Census of Andalusia) from the 14th century.

Notable historical figures who bore the surname Alameda include Juan de Alameda, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico in the 16th century, and Pedro de Alameda, a 17th-century Spanish painter known for his religious works.

In the 18th century, the surname Alameda gained prominence with the birth of Manuel Alameda y Brea (1720-1795), a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Cuba from 1777 to 1784.

Another notable figure was José María Alameda (1787-1842), a Spanish politician and writer who served as a deputy in the Cortes Generales (the Spanish parliament) during the early 19th century.

As the surname Alameda spread across Spain and its colonies, it also gave rise to various place names, such as Alameda de la Sagra, a town in the province of Toledo, and Alameda County in California, which was named after the Spanish word for a shaded walkway or avenue.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alameda

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Alameda.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Alameda was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Alameda has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Alameda was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alameda, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!