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

Guevara, 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 Guevara surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Guevara in America

Guevara is the 85659th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Guevara surname appeared 218 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 Guevara.

We can also compare 2010 data for Guevara 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 Guevara

The surname Guevera is of Spanish origin, rooted in the Iberian Peninsula. It emerged during the medieval period, likely between the 8th and 12th centuries. The name is believed to derive from the Spanish word "guevara," which refers to a mountain cave or grotto. This suggests that the name may have originated as a topographic descriptor for someone who lived near or in a cave-like dwelling.

Guevera is a variant spelling of the more common Spanish surname Guevara. Some of the earliest records of this name can be found in ancient Spanish documents and manuscripts from the 10th century onwards. One notable mention is in the "Codex Diplomaticus" of the Monastery of San Millán de la Cogolla, which dates back to the year 959 and references individuals with the surname Guevara.

In the 12th century, the surname Guevara appeared in the "Becerro de las Behetrías de Castilla," a historic document that recorded the names of landowners and noble families in the Kingdom of Castile. This indicates that the Guevara/Guevera family held a prominent position in Spanish society during that time.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Guevera was Íñigo Vélez de Guevara, a Spanish nobleman who lived in the late 12th century and served as the Lord of Oñate. Another notable figure was Pedro Vélez de Guevara, a 14th-century Spanish military leader and diplomat who played a significant role in the Hundred Years' War.

In the 15th century, Beltrán de Guevara (1436-1504) was a Spanish soldier and author who wrote several works on chivalry and military tactics. His nephew, Íñigo de Guevara (1480-1558), was a renowned Spanish writer and ecclesiastic whose works, such as "Relox de Príncipes" and "Menosprecio de Corte y Alabanza de Aldea," were widely read and influential during the Spanish Renaissance.

Another notable figure was Juan Vélez de Guevara (1611-1675), a Spanish military commander and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Paraguay and Río de la Plata in the mid-17th century.

The surname Guevera has also been associated with various place names in Spain, such as Guevara (a municipality in the Basque Country) and Guevara de Ayala (a town in the province of Álava), further solidifying its Spanish origins.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Guevara

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

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

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

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