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

Azu, 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 Azu surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Azu in America

Azu is the 148347th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Azu surname appeared 111 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 Azu.

The history of the last name Azu

The surname AZU originates from the Basque region of northern Spain and southwestern France, dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Basque word "azu," which means "blue" or "blue-eyed." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname given to someone with distinctive blue eyes.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name AZU can be found in the medieval charters of the Kingdom of Navarre from the year 1275, where a certain "Garsia Azu" is mentioned as a landowner in the village of Ezpeleta. This indicates that the name was already established in the region during that time.

In the 16th century, the AZU surname appeared in various records of the Basque provinces, such as the baptismal registers of the church of San Sebastián in the town of Azpeitia. A notable figure from this era was Juan Azu (1520-1589), a renowned shipbuilder who contributed to the expansion of the Spanish Armada.

As the Basque people migrated to different parts of Spain and beyond, the name AZU spread to other regions. In the 17th century, there are records of an Alonso Azu (1610-1678) serving as a military officer in the Spanish Army during the Thirty Years' War.

The name also found its way to the Americas during the Age of Exploration. One of the earliest documented instances is that of Pedro Azu (1625-1701), a Spanish settler who established a successful cattle ranch in the region that would become modern-day Mexico.

In the 19th century, the AZU surname gained prominence in the arts and literature. María Azu (1835-1912), a celebrated Spanish painter, was known for her portraiture and landscapes depicting the Basque countryside. Contemporaneously, Ignacio Azu (1840-1904) was a renowned Basque poet and playwright whose works helped preserve the Basque language and culture.

While the AZU surname has its roots in the Basque region, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including Latin America, the United States, and other countries with significant Spanish and Basque diaspora communities.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Azu

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Azu, 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!