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

Colque, 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 Colque surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Colque in America

Colque is the 154907th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Colque surname appeared 105 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 Colque.

The history of the last name Colque

The surname Colque is believed to have originated in the Andes region of South America, specifically in modern-day Peru and Bolivia. It is derived from the Quechua language, which was spoken by the Inca civilization and remains widely used in parts of the Andes today. The word "colque" in Quechua refers to a type of storage structure or granary used for preserving crops, particularly potatoes and other tubers.

Historically, surnames in the Andes were often derived from geographic features, occupations, or personal characteristics. The surname Colque likely originated as a reference to someone who lived near or worked with these storage structures, or perhaps even specialized in their construction or maintenance. It is possible that the name was initially descriptive, akin to an occupational surname, before becoming a hereditary family name.

Some of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Colque can be found in colonial-era documents and records from the Spanish colonization of the Andes region in the 16th and 17th centuries. During this period, many indigenous inhabitants were required to adopt Spanish-style surnames, which may have led to the more widespread use and documentation of the name Colque.

One notable individual with the surname Colque was Juan de Colque, an Inca nobleman who lived in the 16th century and played a role in the Spanish conquest of Peru. Another historical figure was Martín de Colque, a prominent landowner and encomendero (holder of an encomienda, a Spanish labor system) in the Cusco region of Peru in the late 16th century.

In more recent history, José Colque (1904-1978) was a Bolivian painter and artist known for his depictions of Andean life and landscapes. Additionally, Jaime Colque (1914-1999) was a Bolivian writer and poet who celebrated indigenous cultural traditions and themes in his works.

It is worth noting that variations in spelling, such as Colque, Colqui, or Colqui, may have existed in different regions and time periods due to the adaptation of the Quechua name into Spanish and other languages.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Colque

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

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 Colque 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.

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

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

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