2000
#23,454
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,011
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.37
Rare Last name
Beltre
Derived from the Spanish word "beltran", meaning "bright raven".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,104 Americans carry the last name Beltre. That puts it at #15,388 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 162,906 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Beltre 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
2.1K
1 in 162,906
Census rank
#15,388
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,835 bearers of the surname Beltre in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15388th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Beltre, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and Black (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Beltre
The surname Beltre has its origins in Spain, specifically in the regions of Castile and León. It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Spanish word "beldad," meaning beauty or fairness, suggesting it may have been an occupational surname given to someone who worked with or sold cosmetics or beauty products.
Historically, the name Beltre can be traced back to various ancient records and documents from Spain. One of the earliest known references to the name appears in the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), a hunting treatise commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile in the 14th century. The text mentions a person named "Pedro Beltre" as one of the participants in a royal hunting expedition.
Another notable historical figure bearing the Beltre surname was Juan Beltre, a Spanish soldier and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés during the conquest of Mexico in the 16th century. Juan Beltre is mentioned in several accounts of the expedition, including Bernal Díaz del Castillo's "Historia verdadera de la conquista de la Nueva España" (True History of the Conquest of New Spain).
In the 17th century, there was a prominent writer and poet from Seville named Luis Beltre de Guevara, whose work "El parnaso español" (The Spanish Parnassus) was widely acclaimed during his lifetime.
The Beltre surname also has connections to various place names in Spain. For instance, there is a small village called Beltrán in the province of Huesca, which may have influenced variations of the name, such as Beltran or Beltran.
Other notable individuals with the Beltre surname throughout history include:
1. Juan Beltre Gutiérrez (1813-1876), a Spanish painter and lithographer known for his portraits and religious works.
2. María Beltre Cabañas (1828-1891), a Spanish writer and feminist activist who advocated for women's rights and education.
3. Enrique Beltre Martínez (1864-1932), a prominent Spanish lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Congress of Deputies.
4. Dolores Beltre de la Fuente (1897-1981), a Spanish sculptor and ceramist known for her avant-garde art pieces.
5. Ramón Beltre Delgado (1923-2008), a renowned Spanish architect and urban planner who designed numerous public buildings and urban projects in Spain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Beltre
Among Census respondents with the surname Beltre, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and Black (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Beltre 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 Beltre surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.3% · 1,748
- White3.1% · 56
- Black or African American1.4% · 26
- Two or more races0.2% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Beltre
Beltre 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
#18,337
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,511
+500 bearers (+49.5%)
Per 100,000 0.51
Rank movement Up 5,117 places
2020
#15,388
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,835
+324 bearers (+21.4%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Up 2,949 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #23,454 | 1,011 | 0.37 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,337 | 1,511 | 0.51 | +500 bearers (+49.5%) | Up 5,117 places |
| 2020 | #15,388 | 1,835 | 0.61 | +324 bearers (+21.4%) | Up 2,949 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 Beltre 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 | #18,337 | #15,388 | 16.1% |
| Count | 1,511 | 1,835 | 21.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.51 | 0.61 | 20.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Beltre bearers went from 1,511 to 1,835 (+21.4% change). The surname moved up 2,949 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,337 to #15,388.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Beltre
FAQ
Beltre surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Beltre?
Name Census estimates that about 2,104 living Americans carry the surname Beltre. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 162,906 residents.
How common is Beltre?
Beltre ranks #15,388 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 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 1,835 people with the surname Beltre. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,104), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 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 Beltre.
Has Beltre become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Beltre went from 1,511 recorded bearers to 1,835. That is an increase of 324 (+21.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #18,337 to #15,388.
What does the Census say about the background of Beltre?
Among Census respondents with the surname Beltre, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.1%) and Black (1.4%). 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 Beltre in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (1,748 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Beltre appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.3%), White (3.1%), Black (1.4%). 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 Beltre (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 Beltre mean?
Derived from the Spanish word "beltran", meaning "bright raven". 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 Beltre (0.61 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 share the surname Beltre?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.