Find out how popular the last name Camara is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Camara.

Camara, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Camara surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Camara in America

Camara is the 4263rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Camara surname appeared 8,324 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Camara.

We can also compare 2010 data for Camara to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Camara

The surname Camara originated in Spain and Portugal, derived from the Latin word "camera" meaning "chamber" or "vault." It is believed to have first emerged in the Middle Ages as a reference to individuals who lived in or were associated with chambers or vaults, possibly as guards, servants, or residents.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Camara can be found in the 13th century Cortes de Valladolid, a legal document from the Kingdom of Castile. The name appears in various medieval Spanish records and manuscripts, often with slight spelling variations such as Cámara or Camara.

In Portugal, the surname Camara is closely tied to the Azores islands, where it was prominently associated with influential families and landowners. The Camara family played a significant role in the colonization and administration of the Azores archipelago in the 15th and 16th centuries.

Notable individuals with the surname Camara throughout history include:

1. Pedro Álvares Cabral (c. 1467-c. 1520), a Portuguese navigator who is credited with the discovery of Brazil in 1500 during his expedition to India. His family name was also spelled Camara.

2. Vasco da Gama (c. 1460-1524), a renowned Portuguese explorer who was the first European to reach India by sea, leading the way for the establishment of a maritime trade route. Some historical records suggest his mother's family name was Camara.

3. Diego de Camara (fl. 16th century), a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Guatemala and served as the first governor of the province of Tuzulutlán.

4. Miguel de Camara (fl. 17th century), a Spanish military officer and governor of the Philippine Islands from 1645 to 1649.

5. António Manoel de Vilhena Camara e Albuquerque (1677-1747), a Portuguese military officer and governor of the Portuguese colony of Macau from 1732 to 1736.

The surname Camara has also been associated with various place names, such as Cámara de Arias (a municipality in Spain) and Camara de Lobos (a city in Madeira, Portugal), which may have influenced the adoption or propagation of the surname in certain regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Camara

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Camara.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Camara was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Camara has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Camara was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Camara, please contact us.

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