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

Barretto, 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 Barretto surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Barretto in America

Barretto is the 29093rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Barretto surname appeared 815 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 Barretto.

We can also compare 2010 data for Barretto 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.

The history of the last name Barretto

The surname Barretto originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish word "barreta," which means a small bar or rod. The name likely referred to someone who worked with metal bars or rods, such as a blacksmith or a maker of iron tools.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Barretto can be traced back to the 13th century in various regions of Spain, including Castile, Aragon, and Catalonia. It was often spelled with variations like "Barreta" or "Barreto" in historical documents.

One notable early reference to the Barretto name can be found in the "Libro de Repartimiento" (Book of Distribution), a document that recorded the distribution of lands and properties in the Kingdom of Valencia after the Christian conquest in the 13th century. Several individuals with the Barretto surname were listed as recipients of land grants.

In the 15th century, a prominent figure bearing the Barretto surname was Juan Barretto, a Spanish explorer and navigator who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493. Barretto played a crucial role in establishing the first European settlement on the island of Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and Dominican Republic).

Another notable Barretto was Pedro Barretto de Meneses, a Portuguese military commander and colonial administrator who served as the 17th Governor of Portuguese India from 1629 to 1639. He was instrumental in strengthening Portugal's control over the coastal regions of western India.

In the 18th century, Antonio Barretto y Peña was a prominent Spanish architect who designed several churches and buildings in Mexico City and other parts of New Spain (colonial Mexico). His most famous work is the Metropolitan Cathedral of Mexico City, which he helped to rebuild after an earthquake in 1711.

During the 19th century, Juan Barretto was a Cuban poet and writer who actively participated in the country's struggle for independence from Spain. His poems and writings played a significant role in shaping the literary landscape of Cuba during that period.

As the Barretto surname spread across different regions and countries, it underwent various spelling variations, including "Barreto," "Baretta," and "Barretta." However, the origins of the name can be traced back to the medieval Spanish word "barreta" and its association with metalworking professions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Barretto

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

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 Barretto 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.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Barretto has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

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

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

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