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

Gajardo, 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 Gajardo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gajardo in America

Gajardo is the 81772nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gajardo surname appeared 231 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Gajardo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gajardo 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 Gajardo

The surname Gajardo originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "gajo," which means "branch" or "stem." This suggests that the name may have been an occupational surname referring to someone who worked with branches or vines, perhaps in agriculture or winemaking.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Gajardo name appears in the 13th-century Cartulario de Valpuesta, a collection of medieval charters and documents from the region of Burgos, Spain. The name is also found in various town and village records throughout the 15th and 16th centuries in Castile and Aragon.

During the Age of Exploration, many Spaniards with the Gajardo surname embarked on voyages to the Americas, contributing to the spread of the name across the New World. One notable example is Juan Gajardo, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru alongside Francisco Pizarro in the 16th century.

In the 17th century, Francisco Gajardo (1592-1658) was a renowned Spanish poet and playwright from Madrid. His works, including the play "El Principe Constante," were highly influential in the development of the Spanish Golden Age theater.

Another notable figure was Jerónimo Gajardo (1701-1784), a Spanish architect and military engineer who designed several fortifications and buildings in Spain and its colonies. His most famous work is the Castle of San Fernando in Figueres, Catalonia.

In the 19th century, José María Gajardo (1821-1892) was a Chilean politician and businessman who served as Minister of Finance and played a significant role in the development of Chile's mining industry.

As the Gajardo name spread throughout the Spanish-speaking world, variations in spelling emerged, such as Gajardo, Gajarda, and Gajardo y Romero. These variations often reflected regional dialects or the influence of other languages on the Spanish spoken in different areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gajardo

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

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

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

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