2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Barcenes
A Galician/Spanish surname derived from the baronial toponymic 'Barcena'.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 222 Americans carry the last name Barcenes. That puts it at #99,694 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,543,938 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barcenes 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
222
1 in 1,543,938
Census rank
#99,694
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
194
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 194 bearers of the surname Barcenes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 99694th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barcenes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.4%. The next largest groups are White (2.1%) and Black (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barcenes
The surname Barcenes is of Spanish origin, originating in the northern regions of Spain such as Cantabria, Asturias, and Basque Country. It is believed to have derived from the Basque word "barca," meaning "valley" or "glen," combined with the suffix "-enes," which indicates a place of origin.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Barcenes can be traced back to the 12th century, appearing in various medieval documents and manuscripts from the Iberian Peninsula. One notable example is the mention of a nobleman named Rodrigo de Barcenes in a charter from the Kingdom of León, dated 1187.
In the 14th century, the Barcenes name gained prominence in the region of Cantabria, where several families bearing this surname held lands and estates. One of the most prominent figures from this period was Diego de Barcenes, a wealthy landowner and patron of the arts, who commissioned the construction of the Barcenes Chapel in the Monastery of Santo Toribio de Liébana in 1352.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, as Spain expanded its colonial empire, several individuals with the Barcenes surname ventured to the Americas. One notable example is Juan de Barcenes, a Spanish explorer and navigator who participated in the exploration of the Pacific Coast of Mexico in the late 1500s.
In the 18th century, the Barcenes name was found in various parts of Spain, including the Basque Country and Andalusia. One notable figure from this era was Manuel de Barcenes y Guzmán (1713-1791), a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of the Philippine Islands from 1776 to 1778.
Another prominent individual bearing the Barcenes surname was José María Barcenas (1784-1854), a Spanish politician and lawyer who served as the Minister of Justice during the reign of Queen Isabella II in the mid-19th century.
Throughout history, the Barcenes surname has also been associated with several place names in Spain, such as Barcena Mayor and Barcena de Cicero in Cantabria, as well as Barcena del Monasterio in Asturias. These place names likely derive from the same Basque root as the surname, further reinforcing its connection to the northern regions of Spain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barcenes
Among Census respondents with the surname Barcenes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.4%. The next largest groups are White (2.1%) and Black (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Barcenes 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 Barcenes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.4% · 185
- White2.1% · 4
- Black or African American1.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barcenes
Barcenes 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
#99,694
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 194
+87 bearers (+81.3%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 52,934 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #99,694 | 194 | 0.06 | +87 bearers (+81.3%) | Up 52,934 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 Barcenes 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 | #152,628 | #99,694 | 34.7% |
| Count | 107 | 194 | 81.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.06 | 62.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barcenes bearers went from 107 to 194 (+81.3% change). The surname moved up 52,934 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #99,694.
FAQ
Barcenes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barcenes?
Name Census estimates that about 222 living Americans carry the surname Barcenes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,543,938 residents.
How common is Barcenes?
Barcenes ranks #99,694 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 194 people with the surname Barcenes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (222), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Barcenes.
Has Barcenes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barcenes went from 107 recorded bearers to 194. That is an increase of 87 (+81.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #99,694.
What does the Census say about the background of Barcenes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barcenes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.4%. The next largest groups are White (2.1%) and Black (1.5%). 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 Barcenes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.4% (185 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barcenes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.4%), White (2.1%), Black (1.5%). 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 Barcenes (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 Barcenes mean?
A Galician/Spanish surname derived from the baronial toponymic 'Barcena'. 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 Barcenes (0.06 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 have the last name Barcenes?
See how common the surname Barcenes is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.