2000
#3,577
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.38
Uncommon Last name
Cadena
A Spanish occupational surname referring to a person who makes or sells chains or chain armor.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 12,964 Americans carry the last name Cadena. That puts it at #3,102 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.78 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 26,439 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cadena 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
13K
1 in 26,439
Census rank
#3,102
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
11K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 11,305 bearers of the surname Cadena in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.78 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3102nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cadena, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cadena
The surname Cadena originates from Spain and can be traced back to the 11th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "cadena," meaning "chain," which may have been a descriptive name for someone who worked with chains or lived near a location marked by chains.
During the Middle Ages, the Cadena name was found in various parts of Spain, including Catalonia, Aragon, and Castile. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in a document from the Monasterio de San Millán de la Cogolla, dated 1089, which mentions a person named Petrus Cadena.
In the 13th century, the Cadena name was present in the Libro del Repartimiento de Mallorca, a record of land distribution in the Balearic Islands after the Christian conquest in 1229. This document includes the names of several individuals with the surname Cadena, suggesting that they were among the early settlers of the islands.
In the 15th century, a notable figure with the Cadena surname was Juan de Cadena (c. 1450-1530), a Spanish explorer and navigator who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493. He later became a prominent figure in the colonization of Hispaniola (present-day Dominican Republic and Haiti).
Another historical figure bearing the Cadena name was Pedro de Cadena (c. 1510-1570), a Spanish soldier and conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru under Francisco Pizarro. He later served as a lieutenant governor in various regions of Peru.
In the 17th century, a prominent member of the Cadena family was Juan de Cadena y Rasal (1630-1705), a Spanish military officer and engineer who served as the Governor of Havana, Cuba, from 1698 to 1705.
The Cadena surname has also been associated with various place names in Spain, such as Cadena de Piedras (Chain of Stones) and Cadena de Montañas (Chain of Mountains), which may have influenced the origin and meaning of the name.
Over the centuries, the Cadena surname has spread across Spain and beyond, carried by individuals and families who migrated to other parts of Europe, Latin America, and other regions of the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cadena
Among Census respondents with the surname Cadena, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Cadena 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 Cadena surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.0% · 10,403
- White6.6% · 747
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 59
- Two or more races0.3% · 35
- Black or African American0.3% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cadena
Cadena 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
#3,117
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,560
+2,437 bearers (+26.7%)
Per 100,000 3.92
Rank movement Up 460 places
2020
#3,102
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,305
-255 bearers (-2.2%)
Per 100,000 3.78
Rank movement Up 15 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,577 | 9,123 | 3.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,117 | 11,560 | 3.92 | +2,437 bearers (+26.7%) | Up 460 places |
| 2020 | #3,102 | 11,305 | 3.78 | -255 bearers (-2.2%) | Up 15 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 Cadena 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 | #3,117 | #3,102 | 0.5% |
| Count | 11,560 | 11,305 | -2.2% |
| Per 100K | 3.92 | 3.78 | -3.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cadena bearers went from 11,560 to 11,305 (-2.2% change). The surname moved up 15 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,117 to #3,102.
FAQ
Cadena surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cadena?
Name Census estimates that about 12,964 living Americans carry the surname Cadena. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 26,439 residents.
How common is Cadena?
Cadena ranks #3,102 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.78 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 11,305 people with the surname Cadena. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (12,964), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.78 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.78 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Cadena.
Has Cadena become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cadena went from 11,560 recorded bearers to 11,305. That is a decrease of 255 (-2.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,117 to #3,102.
What does the Census say about the background of Cadena?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cadena, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Cadena in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (10,403 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cadena appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.0%), White (6.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Cadena (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 Cadena mean?
A Spanish occupational surname referring to a person who makes or sells chains or chain armor. 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 Cadena (3.78 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 Cadena?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.