2000
#13,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,109
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Araya
A Sephardic Jewish surname derived from the Arabic word for "beautiful" or "adorned."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,984 Americans carry the last name Araya. That puts it at #9,026 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 86,033 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Araya 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Araya with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.0K
1 in 86,033
Census rank
#9,026
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,474 bearers of the surname Araya in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9026th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Araya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 52.0%. The next largest groups are Black (37.0%) and White (7.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Araya
The surname Araya originated in the Canary Islands, an archipelago located off the northwestern coast of Africa and belonging to Spain. Its roots can be traced back to the 15th century, when the islands were conquered by the Crown of Castile. The name is believed to derive from the Guanche language, spoken by the indigenous inhabitants of the Canaries before the Spanish conquest.
One theory suggests that Araya is derived from the Guanche word "araña," meaning "valley" or "ravine." Another possibility is that it evolved from the Guanche term "aray," which referred to a type of plant or tree native to the islands. The earliest recorded instances of the surname appear in official documents from the late 15th and early 16th centuries, such as land registries and census records.
In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the Araya surname was Pedro de Araya, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru under Francisco Pizarro. Pedro de Araya was born in the late 15th century on the island of Tenerife and died around 1550 in Peru. Another early bearer of the name was Juan de Araya, a Guanche leader who fought against the Spanish invasion of the Canary Islands in the late 15th century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Araya surname began to spread beyond the Canary Islands as families migrated to various regions of Spain and its overseas territories. One prominent individual from this period was Diego de Araya y Carvajal, a Spanish soldier and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Havana, Cuba, from 1679 to 1683.
In the 19th century, a notable figure with the Araya surname was José Araya, a Chilean poet and journalist born in 1845. Araya's poetic works were influential in the development of the Chilean literary tradition, and he is remembered as one of the country's most important writers of the era.
Another significant bearer of the name was Gregorio Araya Gamboa, a Chilean military officer and politician who served as the Minister of War and Navy from 1901 to 1903. Gamboa played a crucial role in the modernization of Chile's armed forces during the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Araya
Among Census respondents with the surname Araya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 52.0%. The next largest groups are Black (37.0%) and White (7.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Araya 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 Araya surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino52.0% · 1,805
- Black or African American37.0% · 1,287
- White7.4% · 258
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.5% · 86
- Two or more races0.9% · 31
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Araya
Araya 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
#11,476
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,742
+633 bearers (+30.0%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 1,797 places
2020
#9,026
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,474
+732 bearers (+26.7%)
Per 100,000 1.16
Rank movement Up 2,450 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,273 | 2,109 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,476 | 2,742 | 0.93 | +633 bearers (+30.0%) | Up 1,797 places |
| 2020 | #9,026 | 3,474 | 1.16 | +732 bearers (+26.7%) | Up 2,450 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 Araya 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 | #11,476 | #9,026 | 21.3% |
| Count | 2,742 | 3,474 | 26.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.93 | 1.16 | 25.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Araya bearers went from 2,742 to 3,474 (+26.7% change). The surname moved up 2,450 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,476 to #9,026.
FAQ
Araya surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Araya?
Name Census estimates that about 3,984 living Americans carry the surname Araya. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 86,033 residents.
How common is Araya?
Araya ranks #9,026 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.16 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 3,474 people with the surname Araya. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,984), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.16 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 Araya.
Has Araya become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Araya went from 2,742 recorded bearers to 3,474. That is an increase of 732 (+26.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,476 to #9,026.
What does the Census say about the background of Araya?
Among Census respondents with the surname Araya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 52.0%. The next largest groups are Black (37.0%) and White (7.4%). 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 Araya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.0% (1,805 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Araya appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (52.0%), Black (37.0%), White (7.4%). 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 Araya (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 Araya mean?
A Sephardic Jewish surname derived from the Arabic word for "beautiful" or "adorned." 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 Araya (1.16 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 Americans have the surname Araya?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.