Arizaga last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Arizaga

A topographic surname referring to an area with arizas (oak trees).

Arizaga, 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 Arizaga surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Arizaga in America

Arizaga is the 22481st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Arizaga surname appeared 1,144 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 Arizaga.

We can also compare 2010 data for Arizaga 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 22481 28912 -25.03%
Count 1,144 774 38.58%
Proportion per 100k 0.39 0.29 29.41%

The history of the last name Arizaga

The surname Arizaga has its origins in the Basque region of northern Spain and southern France. The name is believed to have derived from a combination of the Basque words "aritz" meaning oak tree, and "aga" which means branch or bough. This suggests the name may have originated as a locational name, referring to someone who lived near an oak branch or grove.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Arizaga surname dates back to the 16th century, appearing in historical records from the town of Lekeitio in the province of Biscay, Spain. During this period, the name was sometimes spelled as Aritzaga or Arrizaga, reflecting variations in the spelling and pronunciation of the Basque language.

In the 17th century, the name Arizaga can be found in records from the nearby town of Markina-Xemein, where a family of that name owned land and properties. This suggests the surname had spread from its original location and established itself across the wider Basque region.

A notable figure bearing the Arizaga name was Juan de Arizaga, a Basque ship captain who played a role in the early exploration and settlement of the Americas. Born in Lekeitio in 1550, he participated in several expeditions to the Caribbean and Gulf of Mexico in the late 16th century.

Another historical figure with the Arizaga surname was Pedro de Arizaga, a Basque priest and missionary who traveled to the Philippines in the early 17th century. He served as a parish priest in the Visayan Islands and was involved in the evangelization efforts of the Spanish colonial regime.

In the 19th century, a prominent individual named José Arizaga was a influential businessman and landowner in the Basque town of Gernika. He played a significant role in the local economy and politics during that time period.

While the Arizaga surname has its roots in the Basque Country, over time it has spread to other parts of Spain, as well as to Latin American countries like Mexico, Argentina, and Uruguay, where Basque immigrants settled during various waves of migration.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Arizaga

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

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 Arizaga was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 2.19% 25
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 97.12% 1,111

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 2.19% 4.26% -64.19%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% 0.65% (S)%
Hispanic 97.12% 94.70% 2.52%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Arizaga last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/arizaga-surname-popularity/.

"Arizaga last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/arizaga-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

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

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