2010
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Arrillaga
A surname of Spanish origin referring to a place named Arrillaga.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Arrillaga. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Arrillaga 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Arrillaga in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Arrillaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Arrillaga
The surname Arrillaga originates from the Basque region of northern Spain and southwestern France. It is believed to have derived from the Basque words "arr" meaning stone and "illaga" meaning pit or quarry, suggesting the name may have initially referred to someone living near or working in a stone quarry.
The name can be traced back to the 12th century, with records showing variations like Arrillague and Arrillaga appearing in the Navarre region of the Basque Country. One of the earliest documented references is found in the Cartulary of San Millán de la Cogolla from 1157, mentioning an individual named Lope Arrillaga.
In the 14th century, the name Arrillaga appeared in the Libro Becerro, a census of landowners and taxpayers in the region, indicating the family's presence and status during that time. The name was also recorded in the Foru Zarra, an ancient legal code of Navarre, dating back to the 16th century.
Notable individuals bearing the Arrillaga surname include:
1. Juan Tomás de Arrillaga (1756-1814), a Spanish military officer and Governor of Alta California from 1792 to 1794.
2. Domingo Arrillaga (1725-1785), a Spanish military officer and Governor of the Californias from 1777 to 1781.
3. Francisco de Arrillaga (1670-1736), a Spanish military officer and Governor of Florida from 1717 to 1736.
4. Sebastián de Arrillaga (1624-1690), a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of New Mexico in the late 17th century.
5. Francesc Arrillaga (1871-1952), a Catalan architect known for his work in Barcelona, including the Casa de les Punxes.
While the name has ancient roots in the Basque region, it has since spread to other parts of Spain, Latin America, and beyond, carried by those of Basque descent or through migration and intermarriage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Arrillaga
Among Census respondents with the surname Arrillaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Arrillaga 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 Arrillaga surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino69.5% · 73
- White29.5% · 31
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Arrillaga
Arrillaga appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-9 bearers (-7.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,769 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -9 bearers (-7.9%) | Down 7,769 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 Arrillaga 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 | #145,220 | #152,989 | -5.3% |
| Count | 114 | 105 | -7.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Arrillaga bearers went from 114 to 105 (-7.9% change). The surname moved down 7,769 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #152,989.
FAQ
Arrillaga surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Arrillaga?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Arrillaga. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Arrillaga?
Arrillaga ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Arrillaga. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Arrillaga.
Has Arrillaga become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Arrillaga went from 114 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 9 (-7.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Arrillaga?
Among Census respondents with the surname Arrillaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.5%. The next largest groups are White (29.5%) and Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Arrillaga in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.5% (73 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Arrillaga appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (69.5%), White (29.5%), Two or More Races (1.0%). 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 Arrillaga (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 Arrillaga mean?
A surname of Spanish origin referring to a place named Arrillaga. 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 Arrillaga (0.04 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 are called Arrillaga?
See how many people are called Arrillaga on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.