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

Galdames, 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 Galdames surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Galdames in America

Galdames is the 65964th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Galdames surname appeared 300 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 Galdames.

We can also compare 2010 data for Galdames 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 Galdames

The surname Galdames is of Spanish origin, originating in the northern regions of Spain during the medieval period. It is likely derived from the Basque words "galde," meaning "question," and "ame," meaning "mother," collectively implying a person from a place where questions were frequently asked or a person known for asking many questions.

Records show that the name first appeared in the 13th century in the Basque region of Spain, particularly in the provinces of Biscay and Gipuzkoa. Early variations of the spelling included Galdamez, Galdamis, and Galdamiz.

One of the earliest known instances of the name Galdames can be found in the Libro Becerro, a medieval census document from the 14th century, which recorded landowners and taxpayers in the region of Castile.

In the 15th century, a notable figure bearing the name Galdames was Juan de Galdames, a prominent merchant and shipowner from the city of Bilbao. He was involved in the lucrative trade between Spain and the Americas during the early years of Spanish colonization.

During the 16th century, the Galdames family played a significant role in the Basque whaling industry, with several members serving as captains and navigators on whaling expeditions. One such figure was Pedro de Galdames, who is mentioned in historical records from the mid-1500s as a skilled navigator and whaler.

In the 17th century, a branch of the Galdames family migrated to the Americas, settling in various regions of New Spain (present-day Mexico and parts of the southwestern United States). One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname in the New World was Hernán Galdames, a settler in the region of Nueva Galicia (present-day Jalisco) in the early 1600s.

Another notable figure was Miguel de Galdames, a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of Chile in the late 16th century. He was involved in several expeditions and battles against the indigenous Mapuche people and is mentioned in accounts of the Arauco War.

As the centuries passed, the Galdames surname spread to other parts of the Spanish-speaking world, with families bearing this name found in various regions of Latin America, including Argentina, Venezuela, and Chile.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Galdames

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

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

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

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