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

dos Santos, 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 dos Santos surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of dos Santos in America

dos Santos is the 5656th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The dos Santos surname appeared 6,137 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname dos Santos.

We can also compare 2010 data for dos Santos 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 dos Santos

The surname Dossantos originates from Portugal, with its roots traced back to the 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the combination of the Portuguese words "dos" (meaning "of the") and "santos" (meaning "saints"), likely referring to a family or individual's association with a particular religious order or patron saint.

During the Age of Discovery, when Portuguese explorers and settlers ventured across the globe, the name Dossantos began to appear in various colonial outposts and settlements. One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname can be found in the archives of the Portuguese colonial administration in Goa, India, dated around 1530.

In the 16th century, the Dossantos name appeared in various historical records related to the Portuguese presence in Brazil. Notable individuals included João Dossantos (1525-1598), a prominent sugar plantation owner in Pernambuco, and Maria Dossantos (1560-1625), a renowned educator and founder of one of the first schools for indigenous children in São Paulo.

The name also surfaced in the Spanish colonial records of the Philippines, with Francisco Dossantos (1610-1678) being recognized as a skilled navigator and cartographer who contributed to the mapping of the Philippine archipelago.

Moving into the 17th century, the Dossantos name gained prominence in the arts and sciences. Pedro Dossantos (1635-1712) was a celebrated Portuguese painter known for his religious works, while António Dossantos (1678-1741) was a respected mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of celestial navigation.

As the Portuguese empire expanded, the Dossantos name traveled far and wide. In the 18th century, records show a Dossantos family residing in the Portuguese settlement of Macau, China, where they were engaged in the lucrative trade of silk and porcelain.

Throughout history, the Dossantos name has been carried by individuals from diverse backgrounds and professions, from explorers and colonists to artists and scientists, reflecting the widespread influence of the Portuguese diaspora across the globe.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name dos Santos

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

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

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

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