2000
#17,457
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,489
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.55
Rare Last name
Higareda
A Basque habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "hill of vision" or "watchtower hill."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,449 Americans carry the last name Higareda. That puts it at #13,589 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 139,957 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Higareda 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
2.4K
1 in 139,957
Census rank
#13,589
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,136 bearers of the surname Higareda in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13589th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Higareda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Higareda
The surname Higareda has its roots in Spain, originating from the Spanish language and culture. It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, likely between the 11th and 15th centuries.
One possible origin of the name Higareda is that it derived from the Spanish word "higuera," which means fig tree. This suggests that the surname may have been initially associated with individuals who lived near or worked with fig trees, perhaps as farmers, gardeners, or landowners.
Another theory suggests that Higareda is a toponymic surname, meaning it originated from a particular place name. In this case, the name could be linked to a town or village called Higareda or a variation of that name, which may have been located in one of the Spanish regions where the surname first appeared.
Early records and historical documents mentioning individuals with the surname Higareda are scarce, but some notable examples can be found in Spanish archives and genealogical records from the 16th and 17th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Higareda was Juan Higareda, a Spanish soldier who participated in the conquest of Mexico in the early 16th century. He was born in Spain around 1490 and died in Mexico in the mid-1500s.
In the 17th century, María Higareda, a Spanish noblewoman, was known for her philanthropic work and support for the arts. She lived in Seville, Spain, from 1621 to 1698.
Pedro Higareda, a Spanish explorer and navigator, was born in 1654 in Cadiz, Spain. He participated in several expeditions to the Americas and is credited with mapping parts of the Pacific coast of North America.
During the 18th century, Ignacio Higareda, a Spanish architect and engineer, left his mark on several notable buildings and structures in Mexico City. He was born in 1712 and lived until 1789.
In the 19th century, Josefa Higareda, a Spanish writer and poet, gained recognition for her literary works. She was born in Malaga, Spain, in 1821 and died in 1878.
While the surname Higareda may have originated in Spain, it later spread to other parts of the world, particularly to Spanish-speaking countries in Latin America, due to migration and the colonization of the Americas by Spain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Higareda
Among Census respondents with the surname Higareda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Higareda 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 Higareda surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.1% · 2,032
- White3.7% · 78
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 10
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 5
- Two or more races0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Higareda
Higareda 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
#13,810
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,189
+700 bearers (+47.0%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Up 3,647 places
2020
#13,589
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,136
-53 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Up 221 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #17,457 | 1,489 | 0.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,810 | 2,189 | 0.74 | +700 bearers (+47.0%) | Up 3,647 places |
| 2020 | #13,589 | 2,136 | 0.71 | -53 bearers (-2.4%) | Up 221 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 Higareda 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 | #13,810 | #13,589 | 1.6% |
| Count | 2,189 | 2,136 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.71 | -3.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Higareda bearers went from 2,189 to 2,136 (-2.4% change). The surname moved up 221 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,810 to #13,589.
FAQ
Higareda surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Higareda?
Name Census estimates that about 2,449 living Americans carry the surname Higareda. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 139,957 residents.
How common is Higareda?
Higareda ranks #13,589 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,136 people with the surname Higareda. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,449), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Higareda.
Has Higareda become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Higareda went from 2,189 recorded bearers to 2,136. That is a decrease of 53 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,810 to #13,589.
What does the Census say about the background of Higareda?
Among Census respondents with the surname Higareda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (3.7%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%). 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 Higareda in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.1% (2,032 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Higareda appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.1%), White (3.7%), American Indian/Alaska Native (0.5%). 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 Higareda (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 Higareda mean?
A Basque habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "hill of vision" or "watchtower hill." 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 Higareda (0.71 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 many people are called Higareda?
Want to know how many people have the last name Higareda? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.