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

Fortes, 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 Fortes surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Fortes in America

Fortes is the 14881st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Fortes surname appeared 1,988 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 Fortes.

We can also compare 2010 data for Fortes 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 Fortes

The surname FORTES is of Portuguese origin, with its roots tracing back to the medieval era. It is derived from the Latin word "fortis," meaning strong, brave, or courageous. This name likely originated as a descriptive nickname for someone who exhibited such qualities.

In the 13th century, the FORTES surname can be found in historical records from the northern regions of Portugal, particularly in the provinces of Minho and Trás-os-Montes. The earliest known spelling variations include Fortes, Fortis, and Fortez.

One of the earliest documented references to the FORTES name dates back to 1287, when a certain João Fortes was mentioned in a land deed from the town of Guimarães. This region was historically significant, as it was the birthplace of the first Portuguese king, Afonso Henriques.

In the 15th century, during the Age of Discovery, several notable Portuguese explorers bore the FORTES surname. Among them was Pedro Fortes, a navigator who accompanied Vasco da Gama on his historic voyage to India in 1498.

Another prominent figure was Fernão Fortes, a soldier and military engineer who played a crucial role in the Portuguese conquest of Malacca in 1511. He later served as the governor of the Moluccas Islands from 1522 to 1525.

During the 16th century, the FORTES name gained further prominence with the birth of Luís Fortes (1508-1588), a renowned humanist scholar and professor at the University of Coimbra. He was widely respected for his contributions to the fields of philosophy and rhetoric.

In the 17th century, Diogo Fortes (1630-1698) was a celebrated architect and military engineer. He is best known for his work on the fortifications of Lisbon and the design of the Aqueduto das Águas Livres, a monumental aqueduct that supplied water to the city.

The FORTES surname has also been associated with several notable individuals in more recent history, such as José Fortes (1785-1849), a Portuguese poet and dramatist, and António Fortes (1919-2000), a prominent journalist and writer who played a significant role in the fight against the Estado Novo regime in Portugal.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Fortes

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

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

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

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