2000
#15,942
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,674
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.62
Rare Last name
Colorado
A surname derived from the Spanish word for the color red, likely referring to a person with red hair or ruddy complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,049 Americans carry the last name Colorado. That puts it at #11,341 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 112,415 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Colorado 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
3.0K
1 in 112,415
Census rank
#11,341
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,659 bearers of the surname Colorado in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11341st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Colorado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Colorado
The surname Colorado has its origins in the Spanish language and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is derived from the word "colorado," which means "red" or "ruddy" in Spanish, referring to the reddish-brown color of the soil found in certain regions of Spain.
The surname likely originated in the areas of Spain with a significant presence of reddish-colored soil, such as Andalusia or certain parts of Castile. It may have been initially used as a descriptive name for people associated with these regions or who had a reddish complexion.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, as Spanish exploration and colonization expanded to the Americas, the surname Colorado began to appear in various Spanish colonial records and documents. One notable example is Juan Colorado, a Spanish explorer born in 1538, who participated in expeditions to the southwestern regions of what is now the United States.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Colorado can be found in Spanish parish records and municipal archives dating back to the late 15th and early 16th centuries. Some of the earliest known individuals with this surname include Diego Colorado, a landowner in Seville, Spain, in the late 15th century, and Pedro Colorado, a merchant from Cordoba, Spain, in the early 16th century.
Throughout history, several prominent individuals have borne the surname Colorado. One notable figure is Luis Colorado, a Spanish Jesuit priest and missionary born in 1548, who worked among indigenous communities in Mexico and authored several works on their languages and customs.
Another notable individual is Pedro Colorado, a Spanish military commander born in 1575, who played a significant role in the Spanish conquest of the Philippines and served as the Governor of the Philippine Islands from 1621 to 1625.
In the realm of literature, Juan Colorado y Rosas, born in 1667, was a Spanish poet and playwright whose works contributed to the Golden Age of Spanish literature.
Additionally, Francisco Colorado, born in 1792, was a Spanish painter known for his religious works and portraits, and his artwork can be found in various churches and museums across Spain.
The surname Colorado has also been associated with place names in some regions, such as the state of Colorado in the United States, which derives its name from the Spanish word "colorado" and the reddish-colored landscapes found in parts of the state.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Colorado
Among Census respondents with the surname Colorado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Colorado 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 Colorado surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino88.0% · 2,340
- White5.5% · 146
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 70
- Two or more races0.6% · 17
- Black or African American0.6% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Colorado
Colorado 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
#11,810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,650
+976 bearers (+58.3%)
Per 100,000 0.90
Rank movement Up 4,132 places
2020
#11,341
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,659
+9 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Up 469 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,942 | 1,674 | 0.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,810 | 2,650 | 0.90 | +976 bearers (+58.3%) | Up 4,132 places |
| 2020 | #11,341 | 2,659 | 0.89 | +9 bearers (+0.3%) | Up 469 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 Colorado 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 | #11,810 | #11,341 | 4.0% |
| Count | 2,650 | 2,659 | 0.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.90 | 0.89 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Colorado bearers went from 2,650 to 2,659 (+0.3% change). The surname moved up 469 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,810 to #11,341.
FAQ
Colorado surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Colorado?
Name Census estimates that about 3,049 living Americans carry the surname Colorado. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 112,415 residents.
How common is Colorado?
Colorado ranks #11,341 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.89 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 2,659 people with the surname Colorado. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,049), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.89 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 Colorado.
Has Colorado become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Colorado went from 2,650 recorded bearers to 2,659. That is an increase of 9 (+0.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,810 to #11,341.
What does the Census say about the background of Colorado?
Among Census respondents with the surname Colorado, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.7%). 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 Colorado in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.0% (2,340 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Colorado appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (88.0%), White (5.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (2.7%). 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 Colorado (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 Colorado mean?
A surname derived from the Spanish word for the color red, likely referring to a person with red hair or ruddy complexion. 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 Colorado (0.89 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 have the last name Colorado?
See how common the surname Colorado is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.