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

Alegría, 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 Alegría surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alegría in America

Alegría is the 5609th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alegría surname appeared 6,200 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Alegría.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alegría 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 Alegría

The surname Alegria originates from Spain and Portugal, where it first appeared in the late 15th century. It is derived from the Spanish and Portuguese word "alegría," which means "joy" or "happiness." The name likely referred to someone with a joyful or cheerful disposition.

In Spain, the name Alegria can be traced back to the region of Castile, particularly the city of Valladolid. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is in the municipal archives of Valladolid from the late 1400s, where a certain Juan de Alegria is mentioned.

The Alegria surname also has roots in Portugal, where it was first documented in the northern region of Minho in the early 16th century. The town of Viana do Castelo was home to several families with the Alegria surname during this time period.

One notable figure with the Alegria surname was Pedro de Alegria, a Spanish navigator and explorer who sailed with Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493. Pedro de Alegria was born in Valladolid around 1470 and played a crucial role in the early exploration and colonization of the Caribbean islands.

Another prominent individual with the Alegria surname was Gaspar de Alegria, a Spanish Jesuit missionary who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Born in Seville in 1574, Gaspar de Alegria traveled to the Philippines and Japan, where he worked tirelessly to spread Christianity and establish Jesuit missions.

In the 17th century, the Alegria surname also appeared in the records of the Portuguese colony of Brazil. One notable figure from this period was João de Alegria, a wealthy landowner and sugar plantation owner in the state of Pernambuco, born around 1620.

Another individual of note was María de Alegria, a Spanish noblewoman born in Valladolid in 1689. She was a prominent figure in the court of King Philip V and played a significant role in the cultural and artistic life of 18th-century Madrid.

Finally, in the 19th century, José Alegria was a renowned Portuguese painter and artist born in Lisbon in 1815. He is known for his portraits and landscapes, and his works are displayed in several museums and galleries throughout Portugal.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alegría

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

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 Alegría 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 Alegría 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 Alegría was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alegría, 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!