2010
#131,379
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Cisternas
A surname derived from the Spanish word "cisterna" meaning a cistern or underground water reservoir.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 136 Americans carry the last name Cisternas. That puts it at #142,788 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,520,252 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cisternas 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
136
1 in 2,520,252
Census rank
#142,788
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
119
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 119 bearers of the surname Cisternas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142788th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cisternas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.4%) and Black (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cisternas
The surname Cisternas originates from Spain and dates back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "cisterna," meaning a cistern or underground water tank, suggesting that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near or was responsible for maintaining a cistern.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cisternas can be found in the Archivo Historico Nacional de España (National Historical Archive of Spain), where a document from 1287 mentions a certain "Juan Cisternas" from the city of Seville.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various records from the region of Catalonia, such as the "Llibre de Repartiments" (Book of Distributions) from the Kingdom of Valencia, which lists several individuals with the surname Cisternas receiving land grants after the Reconquista.
During the 15th century, the name gained prominence in the Canary Islands, where a prominent family by the name of Cisternas played an important role in the colonization and governance of the islands. One notable member was Juan de Cisternas (c. 1430-1495), who served as the first governor of the island of La Palma.
In the 16th century, the name spread to the Americas with the Spanish conquistadors and settlers. One notable figure was Pedro de Cisternas (c. 1520-1587), a Spanish soldier and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the conquest of Mexico and later served as a governor in various regions of New Spain (present-day Mexico and Central America).
Another prominent individual with the surname Cisternas was Alonso de Cisternas (c. 1570-1638), a Spanish playwright and poet who was active in Madrid during the Golden Age of Spanish literature.
Throughout the centuries, the name Cisternas has been recorded with various spelling variations, such as Cisternas, Cisternes, and Zisternas, reflecting regional linguistic differences and the evolution of the Spanish language over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cisternas
Among Census respondents with the surname Cisternas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.4%) and Black (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Cisternas 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 Cisternas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino84.0% · 100
- White13.4% · 16
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cisternas
Cisternas appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#142,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 119
-10 bearers (-7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,409 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #131,379 | 129 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #142,788 | 119 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-7.8%) | Down 11,409 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 Cisternas 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 | #131,379 | #142,788 | -8.7% |
| Count | 129 | 119 | -7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cisternas bearers went from 129 to 119 (-7.8% change). The surname moved down 11,409 positions in the national ranking, going from #131,379 to #142,788.
FAQ
Cisternas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cisternas?
Name Census estimates that about 136 living Americans carry the surname Cisternas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,520,252 residents.
How common is Cisternas?
Cisternas ranks #142,788 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 119 people with the surname Cisternas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (136), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Cisternas.
Has Cisternas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cisternas went from 129 recorded bearers to 119. That is a decrease of 10 (-7.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #131,379 to #142,788.
What does the Census say about the background of Cisternas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cisternas, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.4%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Cisternas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cisternas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (84.0%), White (13.4%), Black (0.8%). 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 Cisternas (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 Cisternas mean?
A surname derived from the Spanish word "cisterna" meaning a cistern or underground water reservoir. 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 Cisternas (0.04 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 many Americans have the surname Cisternas?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.