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

Figueiredo, 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 Figueiredo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Figueiredo in America

Figueiredo is the 12670th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Figueiredo surname appeared 2,439 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 Figueiredo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Figueiredo 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 Figueiredo

The surname Figueiredo originates from Portugal and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Portuguese word "figueira," which means fig tree, and the suffix "-edo," denoting an abundance or location. Thus, Figueiredo likely referred to a place or area where fig trees were abundant.

One of the earliest known references to the name Figueiredo can be found in the medieval Portuguese manuscript "Livro Velho das Linhagens" (Old Book of Lineages), which dates back to the 13th century. This manuscript contains genealogical records of Portuguese noble families, suggesting that the Figueiredo name was associated with nobility or landed gentry.

In the 14th century, the name Figueiredo appeared in various historical documents, such as land deeds and municipal records, indicating the presence of individuals bearing this surname in different regions of Portugal. For instance, Pedro Figueiredo was a prominent landowner in the Algarve region during this period.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, as Portugal expanded its maritime explorations and established colonies, individuals with the surname Figueiredo played a role in these endeavors. One notable figure was João Figueiredo, a navigator and explorer who participated in the Portuguese conquest of Goa, India, in the early 16th century.

The name Figueiredo also gained prominence in the arts and literature. José de Santa Rita Figueiredo (1707-1775) was a renowned Portuguese playwright and poet, known for his contributions to the development of the Portuguese theatrical tradition.

In the 19th century, Figueiredo was the surname of several influential figures, including Cândido José Xavier Figueiredo (1822-1903), a prominent Portuguese philologist and lexicographer who authored the acclaimed "Diccionario da Lingua Portugueza," considered one of the most comprehensive Portuguese dictionaries of its time.

As the Portuguese diaspora spread across the globe, the surname Figueiredo became more widespread, particularly in former Portuguese colonies such as Brazil, Angola, and Mozambique. Manuel Figueiredo (1870-1938), a Brazilian lawyer and politician, served as the 11th President of Brazil from 1919 to 1922.

Other notable individuals with the surname Figueiredo include Armando Caldeira Figueiredo (1890-1957), a Portuguese military officer and politician who served as the 13th President of Portugal from 1951 to 1958, and João Baptista de Oliveira Figueiredo (1918-1999), a Brazilian military officer and the last President of Brazil during the military regime, serving from 1979 to 1985.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Figueiredo

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

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

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

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