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

Antúnez, 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 Antúnez surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Antúnez in America

Antúnez is the 5931st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Antúnez surname appeared 5,808 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 Antúnez.

We can also compare 2010 data for Antúnez 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 Antúnez

The surname Antunez has its origins in the Iberian Peninsula, specifically in Spain and Portugal. It is derived from the Latin name Antonius, which was a Roman family name that later became a popular given name during the Christian era. The suffix "-ez" is a Spanish patronymic, indicating "son of."

Antunez is believed to have originated in the regions of Galicia and Asturias in northwestern Spain, where it was first recorded in the 13th century. It is also found in neighboring regions of northern Portugal, particularly in the provinces of Minho and Douro Litoral.

One of the earliest known records of the name Antunez can be found in the Libro Becerro de Behetrías, a medieval census-like document compiled in the 14th century under the reign of King Pedro I of Castile. This document listed landowners and their properties throughout the kingdom, and the name Antunez appeared several times in connection with various locations.

In the 15th century, there are records of an Alonso Antunez, a Spanish explorer and conquistador who participated in the conquest of the Canary Islands in the early 1400s. Another notable figure was Pedro Antunez, a Galician nobleman who served as a councilor to King Juan II of Castile in the mid-15th century.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Antunez surname spread to the Spanish colonies in the Americas, particularly in Mexico and Peru. One notable individual was Melchor Antunez, a Spanish missionary and linguist who worked among the indigenous populations of Peru in the late 16th century.

In the 18th century, there was a prominent family of Antunez in the Viceroyalty of New Spain (present-day Mexico), where they held positions of power and influence. One member, Juan Antonio Antunez y Acevedo, served as the alcalde (mayor) of Mexico City in the 1750s.

Another notable figure was Manuel Antunez, a Spanish military officer and explorer who was involved in the colonization of California in the late 18th century. He served as the first governor of the Baja California peninsula and played a key role in establishing several missions and presidios (forts) in the region.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Antúnez

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

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

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

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