2000
#10,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,848
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Jiminez
A Spanish patronymic surname meaning "son of Jimeno," derived from the Basque name Ximeno, meaning "one who listens."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,121 Americans carry the last name Jiminez. That puts it at #8,758 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,173 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jiminez 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
4.1K
1 in 83,173
Census rank
#8,758
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,594 bearers of the surname Jiminez in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8758th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jiminez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (7.4%) and Black (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jiminez
The surname Jiminez originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is a patronymic name derived from the personal name Jimeno, which was a Spanish form of the Germanic name Sigemund, meaning "victorious protection." The name Jimeno was popular among the Visigoths who ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula from the 5th to the 8th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Jiminez can be found in the Codex Calixtinus, a 12th-century manuscript that documents the history and traditions of the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage route. The manuscript mentions a certain Rodrigo Jiminez, who was a knight from Galicia in the early 12th century.
The name Jiminez may also have connections to various place names in Spain, such as the town of Ximénez de Jamuz in the province of León. This town likely took its name from an early landowner or noble with the surname Jiminez.
During the Renaissance period, several notable individuals bore the surname Jiminez. One of the most famous was Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881-1958), a Spanish poet and scholar who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1956 for his lyrical poetry.
Another prominent figure was Francisco Jiménez de Cisneros (1436-1517), a Spanish cardinal and statesman who served as the regent of Spain during the early years of the reign of King Charles I. He was also the Grand Inquisitor of Spain and played a significant role in the Spanish Inquisition.
In the realm of art, Juan de Jiminez (active in the late 16th century) was a Spanish painter known for his religious works, particularly those depicting scenes from the life of Christ.
Pedro Jiménez de Guzmán (1601-1664) was a Spanish military leader and governor of New Spain (present-day Mexico) from 1634 to 1640. He is remembered for his efforts to fortify the city of Veracruz against attacks by pirates and foreign invaders.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Jiminez surname in the Americas can be traced back to Gonzalo Jiminez de Quesada (c. 1495-1579), a Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the Spanish conquest of the Muisca Confederation in present-day Colombia in the 16th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jiminez
Among Census respondents with the surname Jiminez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (7.4%) and Black (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Jiminez 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 Jiminez surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino87.3% · 3,136
- White7.4% · 265
- Black or African American2.6% · 95
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.9% · 69
- Two or more races0.5% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jiminez
Jiminez 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
#10,371
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,108
+260 bearers (+9.1%)
Per 100,000 1.05
Rank movement Down 8 places
2020
#8,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,594
+486 bearers (+15.6%)
Per 100,000 1.20
Rank movement Up 1,613 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,363 | 2,848 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,371 | 3,108 | 1.05 | +260 bearers (+9.1%) | Down 8 places |
| 2020 | #8,758 | 3,594 | 1.20 | +486 bearers (+15.6%) | Up 1,613 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 Jiminez 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 | #10,371 | #8,758 | 15.6% |
| Count | 3,108 | 3,594 | 15.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.05 | 1.20 | 14.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jiminez bearers went from 3,108 to 3,594 (+15.6% change). The surname moved up 1,613 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,371 to #8,758.
FAQ
Jiminez surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jiminez?
Name Census estimates that about 4,121 living Americans carry the surname Jiminez. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,173 residents.
How common is Jiminez?
Jiminez ranks #8,758 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.20 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 3,594 people with the surname Jiminez. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,121), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.20 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 Jiminez.
Has Jiminez become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jiminez went from 3,108 recorded bearers to 3,594. That is an increase of 486 (+15.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,371 to #8,758.
What does the Census say about the background of Jiminez?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jiminez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 87.3%. The next largest groups are White (7.4%) and Black (2.6%). 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 Jiminez in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.3% (3,136 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jiminez appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (87.3%), White (7.4%), Black (2.6%). 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 Jiminez (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 Jiminez mean?
A Spanish patronymic surname meaning "son of Jimeno," derived from the Basque name Ximeno, meaning "one who listens." 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 Jiminez (1.20 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 have the surname Jiminez?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.