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

Altamar, 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 Altamar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Altamar in America

Altamar is the 115034th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Altamar surname appeared 152 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Altamar.

The history of the last name Altamar

The surname Altamar has its origins in Spain, where it first appeared in the late 15th century. It is derived from the Spanish words "alta" meaning high and "mar" meaning sea, likely referring to a person or family who lived near the coast or a high point overlooking the sea.

One of the earliest known records of the Altamar name can be found in a Spanish census document from the city of Seville in the year 1487. This document lists a certain Pedro Altamar, a merchant and landowner in the region.

In the 16th century, the Altamar name began to appear in various official records and chronicles throughout Spain and its colonies in the Americas. One notable example is the account of the Spanish explorer Francisco de Altamar, who led an expedition to the Gulf of Mexico in 1542.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Altamar family had a presence in several Spanish cities, including Madrid, Barcelona, and Valencia. Some prominent figures from this period include Juana Altamar (1618-1692), a renowned artist and painter, and Diego Altamar (1745-1812), a military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars.

In the 19th century, the Altamar surname spread beyond Spain to other parts of Europe and the Americas as members of the family emigrated. Juan Altamar (1803-1878), a Cuban-born writer and poet, was a notable figure during this time.

As the Altamar name continued to disperse across the globe, it evolved into various spellings and variations, such as Altamira, Altamira, and Altamirano. One notable bearer of the name in the 20th century was the Mexican anthropologist and archaeologist Alfonso Altamar (1915-2001), who made significant contributions to the study of pre-Columbian civilizations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Altamar

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

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 Altamar 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.

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

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

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