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

Chihuahua, 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 Chihuahua surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Chihuahua in America

Chihuahua is the 31150th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Chihuahua surname appeared 745 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Chihuahua.

We can also compare 2010 data for Chihuahua 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 Chihuahua

The surname Chihuahua has its origins in Mexico, specifically in the northern Mexican state of Chihuahua. It is derived from the Nahuatl language, which was spoken by the Aztecs and other indigenous groups in central Mexico. The name is believed to come from the Nahuatl word "Chihuahuan," which referred to the area where the Chihuahua people lived.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Chihuahua can be found in 16th-century documents from the Spanish colonial period in Mexico. During this time, the Spanish conquistadors and settlers began recording the names of indigenous people they encountered, often adapting them to Spanish orthography.

In the late 18th century, a prominent figure with the surname Chihuahua was Juan José Chihuahua (1738-1810), a Mexican soldier and military commander who played a significant role in the defense of Chihuahua during the Mexican War of Independence.

Another notable person with the surname Chihuahua was José Ventura Chihuahua (1805-1875), a Mexican politician and lawyer who served as governor of the state of Chihuahua from 1857 to 1858.

In the 19th century, the surname Chihuahua began to appear in historical records outside of Mexico, as Mexican immigrants and their descendants settled in other parts of North America. For example, Pedro Chihuahua (1825-1894) was a Mexican-American rancher and landowner in California.

The surname Chihuahua is also associated with the Chihuahua people, an indigenous group that inhabited the region of northern Mexico and parts of what is now the southwestern United States. Their name is believed to have derived from the same Nahuatl root as the surname.

Another notable figure with the surname Chihuahua was Margarita Chihuahua (1890-1978), a Mexican-American activist and community organizer who played a significant role in advocating for the rights of Mexican-American workers in the early 20th century.

Overall, the surname Chihuahua has a rich history that can be traced back to the indigenous cultures of northern Mexico and the Spanish colonial period, reflecting the diverse cultural influences that have shaped the region over centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Chihuahua

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

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 Chihuahua 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 Chihuahua 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 Chihuahua was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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