2000
#971
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 32,772
First available Census row
Per 100,000 12.15
Uncommon Last name
Esparza
A Basque toponymic surname indicating a person who lived near a thorny place or bramble patch.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 47,549 Americans carry the last name Esparza. That puts it at #810 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 13.87 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 7,208 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Esparza surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
48K
1 in 7,208
Census rank
#810
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
13.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
41K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 41,465 bearers of the surname Esparza in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 13.87 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 810th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Esparza, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Esparza
The surname Esparza originated in Spain, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "espárgo," which means "asparagus." This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname, given to someone who cultivated or traded in asparagus.
The name Esparza can be traced back to the northern regions of Spain, particularly in the provinces of Navarre and La Rioja. It is believed that the name may have originated in the town of Esparza de Salazar, located in the Navarre region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Esparza appears in the 13th-century manuscript "Libro de la Cámara de Comptos de Navarra," which was a collection of financial records from the Kingdom of Navarre. This document mentions a certain "García de Esparza," who was a landowner and prominent figure in the region.
In the 15th century, a notable bearer of the name was Juan de Esparza, a Spanish soldier and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in 1519. Esparza played a significant role in the conquest of the Aztec Empire and was later granted land and titles by the Spanish Crown.
Another prominent individual with the surname Esparza was José María Esparza, a Mexican lawyer and politician who lived from 1799 to 1879. He served as the Governor of Chihuahua and played a crucial role in the Mexican-American War, leading troops against the American invasion.
In the realm of literature, one cannot overlook the Spanish poet and playwright Manuel Esparza (1876-1934), known for his works that explored themes of rural life and the experiences of the working class in Spain.
Additionally, the name Esparza has been associated with various place names throughout Spain and Latin America. For example, there is a municipality called Esparza in the province of Puntarenas, Costa Rica, and a town named Esparza de Galar in the Navarre region of Spain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Esparza
Among Census respondents with the surname Esparza, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Esparza bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Esparza surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino93.5% · 38,781
- White5.4% · 2,237
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 121
- Two or more races0.3% · 121
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 114
- Black or African American0.2% · 91
Timeline
Historical Census data for Esparza
Esparza appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 42,559
+9,787 bearers (+29.9%)
Per 100,000 14.43
Rank movement Up 155 places
2020
#810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 41,465
-1,094 bearers (-2.6%)
Per 100,000 13.87
Rank movement Up 6 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #971 | 32,772 | 12.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #816 | 42,559 | 14.43 | +9,787 bearers (+29.9%) | Up 155 places |
| 2020 | #810 | 41,465 | 13.87 | -1,094 bearers (-2.6%) | Up 6 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Esparza surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #816 | #810 | 0.7% |
| Count | 42,559 | 41,465 | -2.6% |
| Per 100K | 14.43 | 13.87 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Esparza bearers went from 42,559 to 41,465 (-2.6% change). The surname moved up 6 positions in the national ranking, going from #816 to #810.
FAQ
Esparza surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Esparza?
Name Census estimates that about 47,549 living Americans carry the surname Esparza. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 7,208 residents.
How common is Esparza?
Esparza ranks #810 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 13.87 per 100,000 residents, which is about 14 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 41,465 people with the surname Esparza. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (47,549), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 13.87 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 13.87 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 14 of them to have the surname Esparza.
Has Esparza become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Esparza went from 42,559 recorded bearers to 41,465. That is a decrease of 1,094 (-2.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #816 to #810.
What does the Census say about the background of Esparza?
Among Census respondents with the surname Esparza, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.3%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Esparza in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (38,781 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Esparza appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (93.5%), White (5.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.3%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Esparza (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Esparza mean?
A Basque toponymic surname indicating a person who lived near a thorny place or bramble patch. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Esparza (13.87 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Esparza?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.