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

Congo, 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 Congo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Congo in America

Congo is the 54864th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Congo surname appeared 375 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 Congo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Congo 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 Congo

The surname Congo is believed to have originated from the Democratic Republic of the Congo, formerly known as the Belgian Congo, in central Africa. It likely emerged during the late 19th or early 20th century when European colonizers and missionaries arrived in the region.

The name Congo itself is derived from the Kongo ethnic group and their Kongo Kingdom, which encompassed parts of modern-day Angola, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and the Republic of the Congo. The word "Kongo" is thought to come from the Kikongo language and means "hunter" or "warrior."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Congo can be found in the writings of Sir Henry Morton Stanley, a Welsh-American explorer who famously mapped the Congo River and its tributaries during his expeditions in the 1870s and 1880s. He often referred to the local inhabitants as "Congos" in his journals and books.

In the 20th century, the surname Congo became more widespread as people from the region migrated to other parts of the world. Notable individuals with this surname include:

1. Patrice Lumumba (1925-1961), a Congolese independence leader and the first democratically elected Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.
2. Georges Congo (1945-2004), a Congolese singer and songwriter known for his contributions to the Soukous genre of music.
3. Gracia Ndako Congo (born 1994), a Belgian professional basketball player who plays for the Belgian national team.
4. Théodore Congo (born 1938), a Congolese politician and diplomat who served as the Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo from 1966 to 1967.
5. Léon Ngongo Congo (1939-2022), a Congolese politician and former Minister of Foreign Affairs of the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

While the surname Congo is most prevalent in the Democratic Republic of the Congo and neighboring countries, it has also spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Congo

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

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

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

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