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

Horta, 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 Horta surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Horta in America

Horta is the 8481st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Horta surname appeared 3,889 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Horta.

We can also compare 2010 data for Horta 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 Horta

The surname Horta originated in Portugal and is believed to have derived from the Portuguese word "horta," meaning "vegetable garden" or "small farm." The name likely arose as a descriptive identifier for someone who lived near or worked on a vegetable farm.

The earliest known record of the Horta surname dates back to the 13th century in the region of Minho, northern Portugal. Historical documents from this time mention individuals with the name Horta living in the areas around Braga and Guimarães.

In the 14th century, the surname Horta can be found in records from the Douro region of northern Portugal, particularly in the city of Porto. It is believed that the name spread to other parts of the country during this period as people migrated.

One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Horta was João Horta, a landowner and farmer who lived in the village of Barcelos in the late 14th century. Another notable early bearer of the name was Diogo Horta, a merchant and ship owner from Porto who was involved in the Portuguese spice trade in the 15th century.

During the Age of Discovery in the 15th and 16th centuries, several Portuguese explorers and navigators with the surname Horta played significant roles in the exploration and colonization of new territories. One such individual was Gaspar Horta, born in 1492, who was a navigator and cartographer involved in the exploration of Brazil and the West Indies.

Another prominent figure was Tomé Horta, born in 1520, a Portuguese explorer and administrator who served as the governor of the Portuguese colony of Malacca in present-day Malaysia from 1567 to 1573.

In the 17th century, the Horta surname gained prominence in the artistic and literary circles of Portugal. One notable individual was Manuel Horta, born in 1611, a painter and architect who worked on several churches and monasteries in Lisbon.

Over the centuries, the surname Horta has spread beyond Portugal to other parts of the world, including Brazil, where it is relatively common due to Portuguese colonization and immigration.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Horta

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

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

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

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