2000
#15,194
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,779
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Buendia
A Spanish surname derived from the phrase "buen día," meaning "good day," likely referring to a person with a cheerful disposition.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,971 Americans carry the last name Buendia. That puts it at #11,598 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 115,367 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buendia 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
3.0K
1 in 115,367
Census rank
#11,598
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,591 bearers of the surname Buendia in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11598th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buendia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.0%) and White (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buendia
The surname Buendia has its origins in Spain, dating back to the medieval era. It is a compound name derived from the Spanish words "bueno" meaning good or fine, and "dia" meaning day. This combination suggests the name may have been bestowed upon someone born on a particularly auspicious or favorable day.
In its earliest recorded use, the name appeared in the 12th century manuscript Codex Calixtinus, a medieval chronicle detailing the journey of pilgrims along the Camino de Santiago. This reference provides evidence that the name was already established in the region of Galicia during this period.
During the 13th century, the name Buendia can be found in various legal documents and charters from the kingdoms of Castile and Aragon. One notable example is a land grant from 1268, which mentions a certain Alonso Buendia as a recipient of a parcel in the town of Calatayud.
The earliest recorded bearer of the Buendia name was Rodrigo Buendia, a knight who fought alongside King Ferdinand III in the Reconquista of Seville in 1248. His descendants went on to establish themselves as a noble family in the region of Andalusia.
Another prominent figure was Inés Buendia, a renowned poet and scholar from the city of Córdoba who lived during the 15th century. Her works explored themes of love, spirituality, and the beauty of nature, earning her acclaim throughout the Iberian Peninsula.
In the 16th century, the Buendia name gained further prominence with the exploits of Juan Buendia, a Spanish conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the conquest of Mexico. Juan Buendia later served as one of the first governors of the province of Veracruz.
The name Buendia has also been associated with several notable places throughout Spain. One such example is the town of Buendia de Alarcón, located in the province of Cuenca, which likely derived its name from an early landowner or nobleman bearing the Buendia surname.
Over the centuries, the Buendia name has spread beyond its Spanish roots, with descendants establishing themselves in various parts of the world, particularly in Latin America and the Philippines, reflecting the reach of the Spanish Empire during the colonial era.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buendia
Among Census respondents with the surname Buendia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.0%) and White (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Buendia 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 Buendia surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino79.0% · 2,047
- Asian and Pacific Islander14.0% · 363
- White4.3% · 111
- Two or more races2.2% · 58
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 9
- Black or African American0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buendia
Buendia 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
#11,882
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,635
+856 bearers (+48.1%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Up 3,312 places
2020
#11,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,591
-44 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Up 284 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,194 | 1,779 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,882 | 2,635 | 0.89 | +856 bearers (+48.1%) | Up 3,312 places |
| 2020 | #11,598 | 2,591 | 0.87 | -44 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 284 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 Buendia 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 | #11,882 | #11,598 | 2.4% |
| Count | 2,635 | 2,591 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.87 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buendia bearers went from 2,635 to 2,591 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 284 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,882 to #11,598.
FAQ
Buendia surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buendia?
Name Census estimates that about 2,971 living Americans carry the surname Buendia. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 115,367 residents.
How common is Buendia?
Buendia ranks #11,598 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.87 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 2,591 people with the surname Buendia. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,971), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.87 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 Buendia.
Has Buendia become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buendia went from 2,635 recorded bearers to 2,591. That is a decrease of 44 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,882 to #11,598.
What does the Census say about the background of Buendia?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buendia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 79.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.0%) and White (4.3%). 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 Buendia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.0% (2,047 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buendia appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (79.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (14.0%), White (4.3%). 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 Buendia (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 Buendia mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the phrase "buen día," meaning "good day," likely referring to a person with a cheerful disposition. 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 Buendia (0.87 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 surname Buendia?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.