2000
#12,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,220
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.82
Rare Last name
Cevallos
A Spanish habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "horses" or "knight".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,556 Americans carry the last name Cevallos. That puts it at #9,939 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 96,388 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cevallos 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
3.6K
1 in 96,388
Census rank
#9,939
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,101 bearers of the surname Cevallos in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9939th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cevallos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cevallos
The surname Cevallos originates from Spain, specifically the Andalusia region, and dates back to the 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "ceballo," which translates to "horse" or "colt." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who worked with horses, such as a horse breeder, trainer, or caretaker.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Cevallos name can be found in the Archivo de Indias, a collection of historical documents from the Spanish Empire's colonial era. This archive contains records of individuals named Cevallos who were involved in the exploration and colonization of the Americas during the 16th and 17th centuries.
In the late 16th century, a man named Juan de Cevallos served as a Spanish military officer and participated in the conquest of the Inca Empire in Peru under the command of Francisco Pizarro. He played a significant role in the capture and execution of the Inca ruler, Atahualpa, in 1533.
Another notable figure with the Cevallos surname was Pedro Fernández de Cevallos, a Spanish explorer and conquistador who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was instrumental in the exploration and colonization of present-day Mexico and is credited with founding several settlements, including the city of Guadalajara.
During the 17th century, a branch of the Cevallos family settled in the region of Extremadura, Spain. One member of this family, Diego de Cevallos y Guzmán (1605-1677), was a prominent military leader and served as the Viceroy of New Spain (present-day Mexico) from 1672 to 1677.
In the 18th century, a Spanish nobleman named Pedro Cevallos Guerra (1759-1838) gained fame as a military commander and colonial administrator. He served as the Governor of Buenos Aires and played a crucial role in the Spanish reconquest of the Río de la Plata region during the Peninsular War.
As the Cevallos surname spread across Spain and its colonial territories, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Ceballos, Cevallos, and Sevallos. These variations were often influenced by regional dialects and scribal errors in historical records.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cevallos
Among Census respondents with the surname Cevallos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Cevallos 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 Cevallos surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.2% · 2,859
- White6.6% · 204
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 20
- Black or African American0.4% · 11
- Two or more races0.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cevallos
Cevallos 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
#10,471
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,069
+849 bearers (+38.2%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Up 2,286 places
2020
#9,939
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,101
+32 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Up 532 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,757 | 2,220 | 0.82 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,471 | 3,069 | 1.04 | +849 bearers (+38.2%) | Up 2,286 places |
| 2020 | #9,939 | 3,101 | 1.04 | +32 bearers (+1.0%) | Up 532 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 Cevallos 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 | #10,471 | #9,939 | 5.1% |
| Count | 3,069 | 3,101 | 1.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 1.04 | -0.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cevallos bearers went from 3,069 to 3,101 (+1.0% change). The surname moved up 532 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,471 to #9,939.
FAQ
Cevallos surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cevallos?
Name Census estimates that about 3,556 living Americans carry the surname Cevallos. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 96,388 residents.
How common is Cevallos?
Cevallos ranks #9,939 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 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 3,101 people with the surname Cevallos. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,556), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 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 Cevallos.
Has Cevallos become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cevallos went from 3,069 recorded bearers to 3,101. That is an increase of 32 (+1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,471 to #9,939.
What does the Census say about the background of Cevallos?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cevallos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (6.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%). 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 Cevallos in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (2,859 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cevallos appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.2%), White (6.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.6%). 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 Cevallos (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 Cevallos mean?
A Spanish habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "horses" or "knight". 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 Cevallos (1.04 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 common is the surname Cevallos?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Cevallos at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.