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

Cueva, 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 Cueva surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cueva in America

Cueva is the 8272nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cueva surname appeared 4,008 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Cueva.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cueva 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 Cueva

The surname "CUEVA" originated in Spain and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish word "cueva," which means "cave" or "cavern." The name likely referred to people who lived near or worked in caves.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Becerro de Behetrias, a medieval manuscript from the 13th century that documented various noble families in the Kingdoms of Castile and León. The document mentions a certain "Pedro de la Cueva" who held lands in the region.

During the 14th century, the Cueva family gained prominence in Spain, particularly in the Kingdom of Castile. Beltrán de la Cueva (1435-1492) was a prominent Spanish nobleman and courtier who served as the Grand Master of the Order of Santiago under King Henry IV of Castile.

In the 15th century, the Cueva family played a significant role in the consolidation of power by the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella. Andrés de Cueva y Anaya (1439-1523) was a Spanish prelate who served as the Archbishop of Seville and the Grand Inquisitor of Spain.

The name "Cueva" is also associated with several place names in Spain, such as Cueva de Almanzora, a municipality in the province of Almería, and Cueva de Roa, a village in the province of Burgos. These place names likely originated from the presence of caves or caverns in these areas.

One notable figure with the surname "Cueva" was Juan de la Cueva (1543-1612), a Spanish playwright and poet who is considered one of the pioneers of the Spanish Golden Age of literature. His works include tragedies, comedies, and lyric poetry, and he was highly regarded by his contemporaries.

Another prominent individual with this surname was Gaspar de la Cueva (1670-1749), a Spanish naval officer and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Chile from 1723 to 1733. He played a crucial role in strengthening the defenses of Chile against foreign threats and improving the infrastructure of the colony.

It is worth mentioning that the surname "Cueva" has also been present in other Spanish-speaking regions, such as Mexico and the Philippines, due to the Spanish colonization of these areas. However, its origins can be traced back to the Iberian Peninsula and the medieval period in Spain.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cueva

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!