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

Grijalva, 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 Grijalva surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Grijalva in America

Grijalva is the 4619th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Grijalva surname appeared 7,678 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Grijalva.

We can also compare 2010 data for Grijalva 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 Grijalva

The surname Grijalva is of Spanish origin and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is believed to have originated from the town of Grijalva, located in the province of Alicante, Valencia region of Spain. The name Grijalva is derived from the Arabic word "Ghurayra," which means "small creek."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Grijalva can be found in the "Repartimiento de Sevilla," a historical document that recorded the distribution of land and properties among the Christian conquerors of Seville in the 13th century. The document mentions a person named Juan Grijalva, who was granted land in the city.

In the 16th century, the Spanish conquistador Juan de Grijalva (c. 1489-1527) played a significant role in the exploration and conquest of Mexico. He led two expeditions to the Yucatán Peninsula and the Gulf of Mexico in 1518 and 1519, paving the way for the eventual conquest of the Aztec Empire by Hernán Cortés.

Another noteworthy individual with the surname Grijalva was Jerónimo de Grijalva (c. 1510-1570), a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of Guatemala and served as the governor of the province of Chiapas in present-day Mexico.

In the 18th century, José Grijalva (1741-1809) was a renowned Spanish painter and engraver who is best known for his portraits and religious works. He was born in Seville and studied at the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando in Madrid.

In the 20th century, Juan Grijalva (1911-2002) was a notable Mexican politician and lawyer who served as the governor of the state of Tabasco from 1959 to 1964. He played a crucial role in the economic development of the state and the promotion of education and social welfare programs.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Grijalva

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

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

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

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