2000
#13,347
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,094
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Chinchilla
A surname derived from the Spanish word for a small, furry rodent native to the Andes mountains.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,704 Americans carry the last name Chinchilla. That puts it at #7,766 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 72,864 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Chinchilla 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
4.7K
1 in 72,864
Census rank
#7,766
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,102 bearers of the surname Chinchilla in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7766th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Chinchilla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.0%) and Black (0.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Chinchilla
The surname Chinchilla has its origins in Spain, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish word "chinchilla," which refers to a small rodent native to the Andes Mountains in South America. The name likely originated as a descriptive surname, perhaps given to someone who traded in chinchilla fur or worked with the animal in some capacity.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Chinchilla can be found in various historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries in Spain. One notable example is a record from the year 1285 that mentions a certain Juan Chinchilla, a nobleman from the region of Andalusia.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the archives of the Spanish Inquisition, where a Juan Chinchilla de Baeza is mentioned as a victim of persecution during the reign of the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon.
During the Age of Exploration, the Chinchilla surname was carried across the Atlantic Ocean by Spanish settlers and explorers. In the 16th century, a man named Pedro Chinchilla was among the early Spanish colonists in present-day Mexico.
Over the centuries, the Chinchilla surname has been associated with several notable individuals. One such figure was Luis Chinchilla (1582-1653), a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator who served as the governor of Panama and Costa Rica in the early 17th century.
In the world of literature, the name Chinchilla is associated with the Mexican poet and writer Manuel Chinchilla Aguilar (1923-1994), known for his works that explored the themes of identity, heritage, and social justice.
Another prominent bearer of the Chinchilla surname was José María Chinchilla (1805-1865), a Honduran politician and military leader who served as the President of Honduras from 1854 to 1855.
In the field of art, the Spanish painter and sculptor Joaquín Chinchilla (1847-1909) gained recognition for his contributions to the Romantic and Realist movements in the late 19th century.
These are just a few examples of the individuals who have carried the Chinchilla surname throughout history, reflecting its Spanish origins and its presence across various regions and cultural spheres.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Chinchilla
Among Census respondents with the surname Chinchilla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.0%) and Black (0.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Chinchilla 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 Chinchilla surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.8% · 3,807
- White6.0% · 247
- Black or African American0.4% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 17
- Two or more races0.3% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Chinchilla
Chinchilla 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
#9,165
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,561
+1,467 bearers (+70.1%)
Per 100,000 1.21
Rank movement Up 4,182 places
2020
#7,766
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,102
+541 bearers (+15.2%)
Per 100,000 1.37
Rank movement Up 1,399 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,347 | 2,094 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,165 | 3,561 | 1.21 | +1,467 bearers (+70.1%) | Up 4,182 places |
| 2020 | #7,766 | 4,102 | 1.37 | +541 bearers (+15.2%) | Up 1,399 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 Chinchilla 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 | #9,165 | #7,766 | 15.3% |
| Count | 3,561 | 4,102 | 15.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.21 | 1.37 | 13.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Chinchilla bearers went from 3,561 to 4,102 (+15.2% change). The surname moved up 1,399 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,165 to #7,766.
FAQ
Chinchilla surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Chinchilla?
Name Census estimates that about 4,704 living Americans carry the surname Chinchilla. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 72,864 residents.
How common is Chinchilla?
Chinchilla ranks #7,766 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.37 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 4,102 people with the surname Chinchilla. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,704), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.37 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 Chinchilla.
Has Chinchilla become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Chinchilla went from 3,561 recorded bearers to 4,102. That is an increase of 541 (+15.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,165 to #7,766.
What does the Census say about the background of Chinchilla?
Among Census respondents with the surname Chinchilla, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (6.0%) and Black (0.4%). 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 Chinchilla in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (3,807 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Chinchilla appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.8%), White (6.0%), Black (0.4%). 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 Chinchilla (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 Chinchilla mean?
A surname derived from the Spanish word for a small, furry rodent native to the Andes mountains. 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 Chinchilla (1.37 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 are called Chinchilla?
Want to know how many people are called Chinchilla? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.