2010
#154,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Fortuny
A surname derived from the Latin "Fortunatus" meaning fortunate or lucky.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Fortuny. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fortuny 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Fortuny in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortuny, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 60.3%. The next largest groups are White (26.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fortuny
The surname Fortuny originated in the Catalonia region of Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Latin word "fortuna," meaning luck or fortune. This suggests that the name may have initially been given as a nickname to someone perceived as fortunate or lucky.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Fortuny surname can be found in the 13th century, when a certain Pedro Fortuny was mentioned in official documents from the city of Barcelona. The name also appears in various medieval manuscripts and records from other parts of Catalonia and the wider Iberian Peninsula.
During the 15th and 16th centuries, the Fortuny name became more widespread as families with this surname migrated to different regions of Spain and its colonial territories in the Americas. One notable bearer of the Fortuny name was Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo (1838-1874), a renowned Spanish painter and etcher known for his Orientalist works.
Another famous Fortuny was Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo's son, Mariano Fortuny y Madrazo (1871-1949), a celebrated designer and inventor best known for his innovative pleated silk dresses and lamps. His fashion designs were highly influential in the early 20th century.
The Fortuny surname has also been associated with several places in Spain, such as the town of Fortuny in the province of Valencia, which likely derived its name from an early settler or landowner bearing the Fortuny surname.
Other notable individuals with the Fortuny surname include Francisco Fortuny (1505-1570), a Spanish Catholic priest and scholar; José Fortuny (1786-1854), a Spanish military officer and politician; and Andrés Fortuny (1808-1873), a Spanish politician and writer.
While the Fortuny name may have originated as a nickname, it eventually became a well-established surname in Spain and various parts of the Spanish-speaking world, with a rich history dating back to the Middle Ages.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fortuny
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortuny, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 60.3%. The next largest groups are White (26.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Fortuny 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 Fortuny surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino60.3% · 73
- White26.4% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander12.4% · 15
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fortuny
Fortuny appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+16 bearers (+15.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 13,598 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #154,907 | 105 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+15.2%) | Up 13,598 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 Fortuny 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 | #154,907 | #141,309 | 8.8% |
| Count | 105 | 121 | 15.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fortuny bearers went from 105 to 121 (+15.2% change). The surname moved up 13,598 positions in the national ranking, going from #154,907 to #141,309.
FAQ
Fortuny surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fortuny?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Fortuny. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Fortuny?
Fortuny ranks #141,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 121 people with the surname Fortuny. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Fortuny.
Has Fortuny become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fortuny went from 105 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 16 (+15.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #154,907 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Fortuny?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fortuny, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 60.3%. The next largest groups are White (26.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (12.4%). 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 Fortuny in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.3% (73 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fortuny appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (60.3%), White (26.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (12.4%). 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 Fortuny (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 Fortuny mean?
A surname derived from the Latin "Fortunatus" meaning fortunate or lucky. 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 Fortuny (0.04 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 are called Fortuny?
See how many people have the surname Fortuny on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.