Alejandro last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Alejandro

A Spanish surname derived from the Greek name Alexandros, meaning "defender of mankind" or "protector of men."

Alejandro, 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 Alejandro surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alejandro in America

Alejandro is the 4563rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alejandro surname appeared 7,770 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Alejandro.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alejandro 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 4563 5468 -18.04%
Count 7,770 5,847 28.24%
Proportion per 100k 2.63 2.17 19.17%

The history of the last name Alejandro

The surname Alejandro is of Spanish origin, derived from the personal name Alejandro, which is the Spanish form of the ancient Greek name Alexander. The name's origins can be traced back to ancient Macedonia in the 4th century BC, where it was borne by Alexander the Great, the famous Macedonian ruler and military leader.

The name Alejandro is a combination of the Greek elements "alexo," meaning "to defend" or "to protect," and "andros," meaning "man." Thus, the name Alejandro can be interpreted as "defender of men" or "protector of men." This name was likely given to signify strength, courage, and leadership qualities.

In Spain, the surname Alejandro first appeared in records during the Middle Ages, particularly in areas such as Castile and Aragon. It is believed that the name was introduced to the Iberian Peninsula by Greek settlers and later became more widespread during the Roman occupation of the region.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Alejandro was Alejandro Fernández de Córdoba, a Spanish nobleman and military commander who lived in the 15th century and played a crucial role in the conquest of Granada, the last Moorish stronghold in Spain.

Another notable figure with the surname Alejandro was Alejandro Malaspina, an Italian-born Spanish naval officer and explorer who led a scientific expedition to the Americas and the Pacific Ocean between 1789 and 1794. His expedition made significant contributions to the fields of navigation, cartography, and natural history.

In the 16th century, Alejandro de Humboldt, a German naturalist, explorer, and geographer, made significant contributions to the study of plant geography and meteorology. He is considered one of the founders of modern geography and is famous for his extensive exploration of South America.

During the Spanish Golden Age, the name Alejandro was also associated with literary figures, such as Alejandro Saavedra Remírez, a Spanish poet and playwright who lived in the 17th century and was known for his works in the Baroque style.

In the 20th century, Alejandro Casona, a Spanish dramatist and novelist, gained recognition for his plays that often explored themes of love, dreams, and the supernatural. His works, including "La dama del alba" and "Los árboles mueren de pie," are considered classics of Spanish literature.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alejandro

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

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 Alejandro was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 4.83% 375
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.55% 43
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 9.55% 742
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.12% 9
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.80% 62
Hispanic Origin 84.16% 6,539

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 Alejandro has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 4.83% 4.41% 9.09%
Black 0.55% 0.63% -13.56%
Asian and Pacific Islander 9.55% 10.48% -9.29%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.12% 0.19% -45.16%
Two or More Races 0.80% 0.68% 16.22%
Hispanic 84.16% 83.60% 0.67%

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

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

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"Alejandro last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 5, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/alejandro-surname-popularity/.

"Alejandro last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/alejandro-surname-popularity/. Accessed 5 October, 2024

Alejandro last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/alejandro-surname-popularity/.

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