2000
#21,754
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,115
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Garfias
Spanish surname possibly derived from a place name meaning "craggy or rocky cove".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,262 Americans carry the last name Garfias. That puts it at #14,528 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 151,527 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garfias 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
2.3K
1 in 151,527
Census rank
#14,528
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,973 bearers of the surname Garfias in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14528th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfias, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.7%. The next largest groups are White (3.3%) and Black (0.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garfias
The surname Garfias originated in Spain and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "garfia," which means "claw" or "talon," referring to the talons of birds of prey. This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with individuals who worked with falcons or other raptors, perhaps in falconry or hunting.
The earliest known records of the Garfias surname can be found in various historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries, including municipal archives and parish registers from various regions of Spain, particularly in the regions of Castile and Andalusia. One notable early reference is in the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), a 14th-century manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile, which mentions individuals with the surname Garfias among the participants in royal hunting expeditions.
In the 15th century, the Garfias family gained prominence in the city of Seville, where they were involved in trade and commerce. One prominent member of the family during this period was Juan de Garfias, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in the late 15th century. Another notable figure was Alonso de Garfias, a 16th-century navigator and explorer who participated in several expeditions to the Americas and the Pacific Ocean.
As the Spanish Empire expanded, the Garfias surname spread to various regions of the Americas, particularly Mexico, where it can be found in historical records from the 16th century onwards. One notable individual was Fray Juan de Garfias, a Franciscan friar who was born in Spain in the late 16th century and played a significant role in the evangelization efforts in New Spain (present-day Mexico) during the early 17th century.
In the 18th century, the Garfias surname appeared in the records of the Spanish Inquisition, with several individuals bearing this name being tried and persecuted for alleged heretical beliefs or practices. One such case was that of Tomás de Garfias, a merchant from Seville who was accused of Judaizing and sentenced by the Inquisition in the 1720s.
Other notable individuals with the Garfias surname include Francisco de Garfias, a 17th-century Spanish painter known for his religious works, and Joaquín Garfias, a 19th-century Mexican politician and diplomat who served as Minister of Foreign Affairs during the presidency of Benito Juárez.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garfias
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfias, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.7%. The next largest groups are White (3.3%) and Black (0.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Garfias 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 Garfias surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.7% · 1,889
- White3.3% · 65
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 5
- Two or more races0.3% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garfias
Garfias 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
#15,322
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,915
+800 bearers (+71.7%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Up 6,432 places
2020
#14,528
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,973
+58 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 0.66
Rank movement Up 794 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,754 | 1,115 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,322 | 1,915 | 0.65 | +800 bearers (+71.7%) | Up 6,432 places |
| 2020 | #14,528 | 1,973 | 0.66 | +58 bearers (+3.0%) | Up 794 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 Garfias 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 | #15,322 | #14,528 | 5.2% |
| Count | 1,915 | 1,973 | 3.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.65 | 0.66 | 1.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garfias bearers went from 1,915 to 1,973 (+3.0% change). The surname moved up 794 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,322 to #14,528.
FAQ
Garfias surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garfias?
Name Census estimates that about 2,262 living Americans carry the surname Garfias. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 151,527 residents.
How common is Garfias?
Garfias ranks #14,528 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.66 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,973 people with the surname Garfias. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,262), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.66 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Garfias.
Has Garfias become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garfias went from 1,915 recorded bearers to 1,973. That is an increase of 58 (+3.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,322 to #14,528.
What does the Census say about the background of Garfias?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfias, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.7%. The next largest groups are White (3.3%) and Black (0.3%). 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 Garfias in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (1,889 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garfias appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.7%), White (3.3%), Black (0.3%). 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 Garfias (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 Garfias mean?
Spanish surname possibly derived from a place name meaning "craggy or rocky cove". 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 Garfias (0.66 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 Garfias?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Garfias is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.