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

Crespo, 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 Crespo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Crespo in America

Crespo is the 2042nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Crespo surname appeared 17,629 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Crespo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Crespo 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 Crespo

The surname Crespo originated in Spain and has its roots in the Latin word 'crispus', meaning 'curly' or 'crisp'. The name likely emerged during the medieval period as a descriptive nickname for someone with curly hair.

Crespo is believed to have first appeared in the northern regions of Spain, particularly in Asturias, Cantabria, and parts of Castile and León. The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the 12th and 13th centuries, with mentions in various historical documents and records from that time.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Pedro Crespo, a 13th-century nobleman from the Kingdom of León. He is mentioned in several chronicles and manuscripts from that era, including the "Crónica General de España" (General Chronicle of Spain).

In the 14th century, the Crespo surname gained prominence in the region of Castile, with several notable individuals bearing the name. One such figure was Alonso Crespo (c. 1320-1390), a respected jurist and legal scholar who served as a judge in the court of King Pedro I of Castile.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the Crespo name spread further across Spain and its territories, including the Americas. Juan Crespo (c. 1460-1520), a Spanish conquistador, was among the early explorers and settlers in the Caribbean and Central America.

In the realm of literature, the Crespo surname is associated with the 17th-century Spanish playwright and poet, Juan Ruiz de Alarcón y Crespo (1581-1639). His works, including the famous play "La verdad sospechosa" (The Truth Suspected), are considered classics of the Spanish Golden Age.

Another notable figure with the Crespo surname was Manuel Crespo y Martínez (1798-1870), a Spanish military officer and politician who played a crucial role in the Carlist Wars, serving as a general in the Cristino army.

As the Crespo family branched out across Spain and its colonies, the name underwent various spelling variations, such as Crespo, Crespos, and Crespillo, reflecting regional dialects and influences.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Crespo

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

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

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

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