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

Cobas, 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 Cobas surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cobas in America

Cobas is the 51610th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cobas surname appeared 403 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 Cobas.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cobas 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 Cobas

The surname Cobas is believed to have originated in the Spanish region of Galicia, situated in the northwestern corner of the Iberian Peninsula. Its roots can be traced back to the early Middle Ages, around the 9th or 10th century.

One theory suggests that Cobas is derived from the Latin word "cupa," meaning a barrel or cask. This etymology might indicate an ancestral connection to a family involved in the production or trade of wine or other liquids stored in casks. Alternatively, the name could have evolved from a Galician place name containing the word "cova," which translates to "cave" or "hollow."

In the 12th century, a nobleman named Pedro Fernandez de Cobas was mentioned in a charter granted by King Alfonso VII of León and Castile. This document provides one of the earliest known references to the Cobas surname. Around the same period, the name also appeared in records from the Monastery of San Salvador de Celanova, located in Ourense, Galicia.

During the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the Cobas name was Gonzalo Perez de Cobas, a knight who served under King Alfonso X of Castile and León. He was recognized for his valor and loyalty during the Reconquista, the centuries-long struggle to reclaim the Iberian Peninsula from Moorish rule.

In the 15th century, a wealthy merchant named Juan de Cobas made his fortune in the thriving trade between Spain and the New World. He established a prominent lineage in the city of Seville, where his descendants continued to play influential roles in commerce and local governance.

Another noteworthy individual with the Cobas surname was Alonso de Cobas, a Spanish explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his famous expedition to conquer Mexico in the early 16th century. Alonso de Cobas was among the first Europeans to witness the grandeur of the Aztec Empire and its capital, Tenochtitlan.

Over the centuries, variations of the surname emerged, such as Covas, Cuevas, and Coba, reflecting the linguistic diversity of the regions where Cobas families settled. These variations often carried similar meanings, frequently related to caves, hollows, or wine-making traditions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cobas

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

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

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

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