Duran last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Duran

A Spanish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "tough" or "enduring."

Duran, 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 Duran surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Duran in America

Duran is the 349th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Duran surname appeared 89,401 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 30 people would have the surname Duran.

We can also compare 2010 data for Duran 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 349 434 -21.71%
Count 89,401 68,046 27.13%
Proportion per 100k 30.31 25.22 18.33%

The history of the last name Duran

The surname Duran originated in Spain during the medieval era, and it is believed to have derived from the Latin name "Durandus," which means "enduring" or "long-lasting." This name was particularly popular in the regions of Catalonia and Valencia, where it first appeared in historical records.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Duran can be found in the Catalan manuscript "Llibre dels Fets" (Book of Deeds), which dates back to the 13th century. This manuscript chronicles the life and conquests of King James I of Aragon, and it mentions several individuals with the surname Duran who were part of his court or military campaigns.

During the 14th and 15th centuries, the Duran name gained prominence in the city of Valencia, where several families bearing this surname held influential positions in the local government and trade guilds. One notable example is Jerónimo Duran, a wealthy merchant and banker who lived in Valencia in the late 15th century.

In the 16th century, the Duran name spread to other parts of Spain, as well as to the Spanish colonies in the Americas. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname in the New World was Juan Duran, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 1500s.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Duran, including:

  1. Guillermo Durán (c. 1230-1326), a Catalan philosopher and theologian known for his work on natural philosophy and metaphysics.
  2. Agustín Durán (1789-1862), a Mexican writer, historian, and politician who played a significant role in the Mexican War of Independence.
  3. Carlos Durán Cartelier (1848-1926), a Chilean writer and diplomat who served as the Chilean ambassador to several countries.
  4. Roberto Durán (born 1951), a Panamanian professional boxer who held world titles in four weight divisions and was known as one of the greatest boxers of all time.
  5. Víctor Durán (born 1973), a Spanish professional tennis player who achieved a career-high ranking of No. 27 in the world and won six ATP singles titles.

The surname Duran has also been associated with various place names and toponyms throughout Spain and Latin America, such as Duran, a municipality in the province of Valencia, and Durango, a city and state in northern Mexico.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Duran

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

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 Duran was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 9.93% 8,878
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.54% 483
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 1.23% 1,100
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.78% 697
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.41% 367
Hispanic Origin 87.11% 77,877

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 Duran has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 9.93% 11.58% -15.34%
Black 0.54% 0.56% -3.64%
Asian and Pacific Islander 1.23% 1.09% 12.07%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.78% 0.93% -17.54%
Two or More Races 0.41% 0.68% -49.54%
Hispanic 87.11% 85.17% 2.25%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Duran last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 31, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/duran-surname-popularity/.

"Duran last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/duran-surname-popularity/. Accessed 31 October, 2024

Duran last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/duran-surname-popularity/.

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