2010
#153,769
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Laveaga
A place surname derived from the Spanish "La Vega" meaning an irrigated plain or meadow.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Laveaga. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Laveaga 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Laveaga in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Laveaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Laveaga
The surname LAVEAGA originated in the Basque region of northern Spain and southern France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Basque words "labe" meaning "furnace" or "oven" and "aga" meaning "branch" or "offspring." This suggests the name may have been an occupational surname for someone who worked with furnaces or ovens.
Early spellings of the name included variations like Labeaga, Labeyaga, and Lavayaga. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was found in a 14th century manuscript from the village of Laveaga in Navarre, Spain. This village likely took its name from the surname, indicating the presence of the LAVEAGA family in the area during that time.
In the 15th century, the LAVEAGA name appeared in records from the town of Bayonne in southwestern France, which was part of the historical Basque region. A notable figure from this period was Juan LAVEAGA, a merchant and ship owner who was born in Bayonne in 1452 and died in 1522.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the LAVEAGA name spread to other parts of Spain and Europe as members of the family migrated. In 1587, Pedro LAVEAGA, a Spanish soldier, was recorded as serving in the Spanish Army of Flanders during the Eighty Years' War against the Dutch.
In the 18th century, the LAVEAGA name appeared in records from the Spanish colonial territories of the Americas. Maria LAVEAGA, born in 1723 in Mexico City, was a prominent landowner and philanthropist who donated significant funds to the construction of a local church.
Another notable figure was Ignacio LAVEAGA, a Basque-American businessman and politician who was born in 1819 in Los Angeles, California. He played a key role in the development of the city's early infrastructure and served as the city's mayor from 1872 to 1874.
Throughout its history, the LAVEAGA surname has maintained its roots in the Basque culture and has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including merchants, soldiers, landowners, and political figures.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laveaga
Among Census respondents with the surname Laveaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Laveaga 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 Laveaga surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.5% · 105
- White4.5% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Laveaga
Laveaga appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
+4 bearers (+3.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,323 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #153,769 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.8%) | Up 4,323 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 Laveaga 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 | #153,769 | #149,446 | 2.8% |
| Count | 106 | 110 | 3.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Laveaga bearers went from 106 to 110 (+3.8% change). The surname moved up 4,323 positions in the national ranking, going from #153,769 to #149,446.
FAQ
Laveaga surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Laveaga?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Laveaga. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Laveaga?
Laveaga ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Laveaga. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Laveaga.
Has Laveaga become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Laveaga went from 106 recorded bearers to 110. That is an increase of 4 (+3.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #153,769 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Laveaga?
Among Census respondents with the surname Laveaga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.5%). 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 Laveaga in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Laveaga appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.5%), White (4.5%). 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 Laveaga (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 Laveaga mean?
A place surname derived from the Spanish "La Vega" meaning an irrigated plain or meadow. 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 Laveaga (0.04 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 common is the surname Laveaga?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Laveaga at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.