2000
#14,187
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,942
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.72
Rare Last name
Barrientes
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Barrientos, derived from "barriento" meaning "muddy".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,503 Americans carry the last name Barrientes. That puts it at #13,352 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 136,937 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barrientes 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
2.5K
1 in 136,937
Census rank
#13,352
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,183 bearers of the surname Barrientes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13352nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.9%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barrientes
The surname Barrientes is of Spanish origin, with its roots traced back to the medieval period in the Iberian Peninsula. The name is derived from the Spanish word "barriente," which means "ravine" or "gorge," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this surname may have lived near such geographical features.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Barrientes can be found in the 14th-century manuscript, the "Libro de la Montería," which details the hunting expeditions of King Alfonso XI of Castile. This document mentions a place called "Barrientes" in the region of Castile and León, indicating that the surname may have originated from this location.
During the 15th century, the Barrientes family gained prominence in the Kingdom of Castile. Notable figures from this period include Juan de Barrientes, a influential courtier and diplomat who served under King Juan II of Castile in the mid-15th century.
As the Spanish Empire expanded across the globe, the Barrientes surname spread to various parts of the world, including the Americas during the colonial era. One notable individual from this period was Pedro de Barrientes, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 16th century.
In the realm of arts and literature, the Barrientes surname has also made its mark. Miguel de Barrientes, born in 1538 in Toledo, Spain, was a renowned playwright and poet during the Spanish Golden Age. His works, which included plays and sonnets, were highly acclaimed by his contemporaries.
Another notable figure bearing the Barrientes surname was Tomás de Barrientes, a Spanish missionary who traveled to the Americas in the late 16th century. He played a significant role in the evangelization efforts and establishment of Catholic missions in present-day Colombia and Venezuela.
Over the centuries, variations in the spelling of the surname emerged, such as Barriente, Barrienta, and Barriendos, reflecting regional linguistic variations and the evolution of the Spanish language. Place names like Barrientos, found in various parts of Spain, also share a similar etymological root with the surname Barrientes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barrientes
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.9%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Barrientes 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 Barrientes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.9% · 2,007
- White6.4% · 139
- Two or more races0.5% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 8
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barrientes
Barrientes appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#13,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,287
+345 bearers (+17.8%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Up 853 places
2020
#13,352
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,183
-104 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Down 18 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,187 | 1,942 | 0.72 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,334 | 2,287 | 0.78 | +345 bearers (+17.8%) | Up 853 places |
| 2020 | #13,352 | 2,183 | 0.73 | -104 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 18 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 Barrientes 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 | #13,334 | #13,352 | -0.1% |
| Count | 2,287 | 2,183 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.78 | 0.73 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barrientes bearers went from 2,287 to 2,183 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 18 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,334 to #13,352.
FAQ
Barrientes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barrientes?
Name Census estimates that about 2,503 living Americans carry the surname Barrientes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 136,937 residents.
How common is Barrientes?
Barrientes ranks #13,352 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.73 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,183 people with the surname Barrientes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,503), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.73 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Barrientes.
Has Barrientes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barrientes went from 2,287 recorded bearers to 2,183. That is a decrease of 104 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,334 to #13,352.
What does the Census say about the background of Barrientes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.9%. The next largest groups are White (6.4%) and Two or More Races (0.5%). 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 Barrientes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (2,007 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barrientes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.9%), White (6.4%), Two or More Races (0.5%). 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 Barrientes (2000, 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 Barrientes mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Barrientos, derived from "barriento" meaning "muddy". 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 Barrientes (0.73 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 common is the surname Barrientes?
Find out how many people have the surname Barrientes on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.