2000
#15,046
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,799
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.67
Rare Last name
Buentello
A Spanish surname derived from the words "buen" meaning "good" and "tello" meaning "crop" or "harvest."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,365 Americans carry the last name Buentello. That puts it at #13,999 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 144,928 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Buentello 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
2.4K
1 in 144,928
Census rank
#13,999
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,062 bearers of the surname Buentello in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13999th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Buentello, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Buentello
The surname Buentello has its origins in Spain and dates back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish words "bueno" meaning good, and "tello" which was a nickname for someone with a strong or determined personality.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was in the town of Puebla de Sanabria, located in the province of Zamora, Spain. The name appears in several documents and manuscripts from this region, including a land ownership record from 1287.
In the 14th century, there are records of a nobleman named Juan Buentello who owned vast tracts of land in the region of Castilla-La Mancha. His descendants continued to use the surname and played a prominent role in the local government and military affairs of the area.
During the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 16th and 17th centuries, many individuals bearing the surname Buentello made their way to the New World, particularly to Mexico and regions of present-day Texas and New Mexico.
One notable figure was Alonso Buentello, born in 1592 in Seville, Spain. He was a soldier and explorer who accompanied several expeditions to the northern territories of New Spain (present-day Mexico and southwestern United States). He is credited with helping establish some of the earliest Spanish settlements in what is now Texas.
In the 18th century, a prominent member of the Buentello family was Ignacio Buentello (1715-1798), a wealthy landowner and rancher in the region of Coahuila, Mexico. He played an important role in the development of the area's cattle industry and contributed to the growth of several towns and villages.
Another significant figure was María Buentello (1826-1912), a businesswoman and landowner in the area of San Antonio, Texas. She was known for her philanthropic efforts and her support of the local community during times of hardship.
As the surname spread across different regions, variations in spelling emerged, such as Buentillo, Buentiello, and Buentello y Martínez. However, the core meaning and origin remained tied to the Spanish roots of the name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Buentello
Among Census respondents with the surname Buentello, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Buentello 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 Buentello surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino90.0% · 1,856
- White9.0% · 185
- Two or more races0.5% · 11
- Black or African American0.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Buentello
Buentello 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
#13,964
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,160
+361 bearers (+20.1%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Up 1,082 places
2020
#13,999
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,062
-98 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 35 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,046 | 1,799 | 0.67 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,964 | 2,160 | 0.73 | +361 bearers (+20.1%) | Up 1,082 places |
| 2020 | #13,999 | 2,062 | 0.69 | -98 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 35 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 Buentello 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 | #13,964 | #13,999 | -0.3% |
| Count | 2,160 | 2,062 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.73 | 0.69 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Buentello bearers went from 2,160 to 2,062 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 35 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,964 to #13,999.
FAQ
Buentello surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Buentello?
Name Census estimates that about 2,365 living Americans carry the surname Buentello. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 144,928 residents.
How common is Buentello?
Buentello ranks #13,999 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 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 2,062 people with the surname Buentello. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,365), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 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 Buentello.
Has Buentello become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Buentello went from 2,160 recorded bearers to 2,062. That is a decrease of 98 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,964 to #13,999.
What does the Census say about the background of Buentello?
Among Census respondents with the surname Buentello, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.0%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) 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 Buentello in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (1,856 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Buentello appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (90.0%), White (9.0%), 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 Buentello (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 Buentello mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the words "buen" meaning "good" and "tello" meaning "crop" or "harvest." 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 Buentello (0.69 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 Buentello?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.