2000
#18,239
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,405
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.52
Rare Last name
Alejos
Derived from a Spanish place name meaning "far away" or "remote," likely referring to someone from such a location.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,318 Americans carry the last name Alejos. That puts it at #14,261 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,866 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alejos 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
2.3K
1 in 147,866
Census rank
#14,261
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,021 bearers of the surname Alejos in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14261st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alejos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alejos
The surname "ALEJOS" is believed to have originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish word "alejo," which means "far away" or "distant." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived far from the town or village center, or who had come from a distant place.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname "ALEJOS" can be found in various Spanish historical documents and records from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable mention is in the "Cartulario de la Iglesia de Toledo," a collection of medieval charters and deeds from the Archdiocese of Toledo, where a certain "Alfonso Alejos" is listed as a landowner in the year 1287.
Another early reference to the name appears in the "Libro de Repartimiento de Sevilla," a 13th-century document detailing the distribution of land and properties in the city of Seville after its conquest by the Christian forces in 1248. Here, a "Juan Alejos" is recorded as receiving a house and lands in the Barrio de la Judería, the Jewish quarter of the city.
During the 15th century, the surname "ALEJOS" can be found in various municipal records and census documents from cities and towns across Spain, particularly in the regions of Andalusia, Castile, and Aragon. One notable individual from this period was Bartolomé Alejos, a merchant and landowner who lived in the city of Córdoba in the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, the name "ALEJOS" gained prominence with the rise of Hernando de Alejos, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru alongside Francisco Pizarro. Born in Extremadura around 1505, Hernando de Alejos played a significant role in the subjugation of the Inca Empire and later settled in the city of Cuzco, where he became a prominent landowner and encomendero (holder of an encomienda, a Spanish labor system).
Another notable figure with the surname "ALEJOS" was Fray Juan de Alejos, a Franciscan friar and missionary who lived in the 17th century. Born in Seville in 1612, Fray Juan de Alejos traveled to the Spanish colonies in the Americas, where he dedicated his life to evangelizing and ministering to the indigenous populations. He is particularly known for his work among the Tarahumara people in present-day northern Mexico.
In the 18th century, the name "ALEJOS" continued to be present in various Spanish records and documents, particularly in the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura. One noteworthy individual from this period was Diego Alejos, a military officer who served in the Spanish Army during the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1714).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alejos
Among Census respondents with the surname Alejos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Alejos 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 Alejos surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino90.0% · 1,819
- White6.8% · 138
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 29
- Black or African American0.8% · 17
- Two or more races0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alejos
Alejos 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
#15,370
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,908
+503 bearers (+35.8%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Up 2,869 places
2020
#14,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,021
+113 bearers (+5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 1,109 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,239 | 1,405 | 0.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,370 | 1,908 | 0.65 | +503 bearers (+35.8%) | Up 2,869 places |
| 2020 | #14,261 | 2,021 | 0.68 | +113 bearers (+5.9%) | Up 1,109 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 Alejos 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 | #15,370 | #14,261 | 7.2% |
| Count | 1,908 | 2,021 | 5.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.65 | 0.68 | 4.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alejos bearers went from 1,908 to 2,021 (+5.9% change). The surname moved up 1,109 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,370 to #14,261.
FAQ
Alejos surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alejos?
Name Census estimates that about 2,318 living Americans carry the surname Alejos. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,866 residents.
How common is Alejos?
Alejos ranks #14,261 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,021 people with the surname Alejos. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,318), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Alejos.
Has Alejos become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alejos went from 1,908 recorded bearers to 2,021. That is an increase of 113 (+5.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,370 to #14,261.
What does the Census say about the background of Alejos?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alejos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Alejos in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (1,819 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alejos appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (90.0%), White (6.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.4%). 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 Alejos (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 Alejos mean?
Derived from a Spanish place name meaning "far away" or "remote," likely referring to someone from such a location. 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 Alejos (0.68 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 surname Alejos?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.