2000
#113,519
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 143
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Freyta
Of uncertain origin, possibly an old Swiss German occupational surname related to agriculture or farming.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Freyta. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Freyta 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Freyta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Freyta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 61.0%. The next largest groups are White (25.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Freyta
The surname FREYTA is of Spanish origin and is believed to have emerged during the 12th century in the region of Castile. The name is thought to derive from the Spanish word "freita," which means "fringe" or "border," suggesting that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a border or frontier area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the FREYTA surname can be found in a 13th-century document from the town of Burgos, where a certain Pedro Freyta was mentioned as a landowner. This indicates that the name had already established itself in the region by that time.
In the 15th century, the FREYTA surname appeared in several records from the city of Seville, including a reference to a merchant named Juan Freyta who traded goods with the nearby port of Cádiz. This suggests that the name had spread to other parts of Spain by that point.
During the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the FREYTA surname was Diego Freyta, a Spanish explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in 1519. Freyta played a role in the conquest of the Aztec Empire and is mentioned in several historical accounts of the time.
In the 17th century, a woman named María Freyta gained notoriety in Madrid for her skill as a lacemaker. Her intricate and delicate work was highly sought after by the Spanish nobility, and she is credited with helping to establish the city as a center of lacemaking.
As the Spanish Empire expanded across the Americas, the FREYTA surname traveled with it. In the 18th century, a wealthy landowner named Rodrigo Freyta established a hacienda in the region of Puebla, Mexico, which remained in the family for several generations.
Other notable individuals with the FREYTA surname include Antonio Freyta, a 19th-century Spanish painter known for his landscapes and portraits, and Emilia Freyta, a 20th-century Peruvian writer and feminist activist who advocated for women's rights and education.
While the FREYTA surname originated in Spain, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly Latin American countries with historical ties to Spain. However, its roots can be traced back to the medieval period in the region of Castile, where it likely emerged as a descriptive name related to geographic borders or fringes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Freyta
Among Census respondents with the surname Freyta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 61.0%. The next largest groups are White (25.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Freyta 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 Freyta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino61.0% · 72
- White25.4% · 30
- American Indian and Alaska Native5.9% · 7
- Two or more races5.9% · 7
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Freyta
Freyta 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
#117,480
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 148
+5 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 3,961 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-30 bearers (-20.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 26,031 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #113,519 | 143 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #117,480 | 148 | 0.05 | +5 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 3,961 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | -30 bearers (-20.3%) | Down 26,031 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 Freyta 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 | #117,480 | #143,511 | -22.2% |
| Count | 148 | 118 | -20.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -21.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Freyta bearers went from 148 to 118 (-20.3% change). The surname moved down 26,031 positions in the national ranking, going from #117,480 to #143,511.
FAQ
Freyta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Freyta?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Freyta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Freyta?
Freyta ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Freyta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Freyta.
Has Freyta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Freyta went from 148 recorded bearers to 118. That is a decrease of 30 (-20.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #117,480 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Freyta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Freyta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 61.0%. The next largest groups are White (25.4%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (5.9%). 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 Freyta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.0% (72 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Freyta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (61.0%), White (25.4%), American Indian/Alaska Native (5.9%). 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 Freyta (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 Freyta mean?
Of uncertain origin, possibly an old Swiss German occupational surname related to agriculture or farming. 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 Freyta (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 common is the surname Freyta?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Freyta is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.