2000
#11,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,524
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.94
Rare Last name
Legaspi
A Basque surname derived from the place name Legazpi, meaning "place of the heather" or "a pasture with heather."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,406 Americans carry the last name Legaspi. That puts it at #8,261 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.29 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 77,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Legaspi 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
4.4K
1 in 77,793
Census rank
#8,261
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,842 bearers of the surname Legaspi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.29 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8261st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Legaspi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 69.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Legaspi
The surname LEGASPI originated in the Philippines during the 16th century Spanish colonial era. It is derived from the name of the Spanish explorer Miguel López de Legazpi, the first governor-general of the Spanish East Indies who led the expedition that established the first permanent Spanish settlement in the Philippines in 1565.
The name LEGASPI was likely adopted by indigenous Filipinos who converted to Christianity and took on Spanish surnames as part of the process of hispanization during the Spanish colonial period. The name may have also been given to children born to Spanish settlers and their Philippine partners or descendants.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the LEGASPI surname can be found in the 1591 census of the Philippines, which listed several individuals with the name residing in the areas around Manila and other Spanish settlements. The name also appears in various historical documents and records from the Spanish colonial era, including church records, land grants, and official correspondence.
Notable individuals throughout history with the surname LEGASPI include:
1. Felipe Legaspi (1734-1798), a Spanish-Filipino military officer and governor of the Mariana Islands from 1786 to 1794.
2. Pedro Legaspi y Salcedo (1763-1826), a Spanish-Filipino naval officer and explorer who led expeditions to the Pacific Northwest and California in the late 18th century.
3. Josefa Legaspi (1766-1842), a prominent member of the upper class in Manila during the Spanish colonial period and a benefactor of the Beaterio de Santa Rosa, a convent and school for indigenous women.
4. Miguel Legaspi y Legazpi (1847-1916), a Filipino lawyer, journalist, and politician who served as a member of the Malolos Congress during the Philippine Revolution against Spain.
5. Tomás Legaspi (1880-1962), a Filipino artist and painter known for his portraiture and religious works, including murals in various churches in Manila.
The LEGASPI surname has been associated with several place names in the Philippines, reflecting the influence and legacy of the Spanish colonial era. For example, the city of Legazpi in the province of Albay is named after Miguel López de Legazpi, and the nearby Legaspi Airport bears the family name as well.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Legaspi
Among Census respondents with the surname Legaspi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 69.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Legaspi 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 Legaspi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander69.3% · 2,662
- Hispanic or Latino20.8% · 800
- Two or more races4.8% · 186
- White4.8% · 183
- Black or African American0.3% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Legaspi
Legaspi 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
#9,251
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,520
+996 bearers (+39.5%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Up 2,198 places
2020
#8,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,842
+322 bearers (+9.1%)
Per 100,000 1.29
Rank movement Up 990 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,449 | 2,524 | 0.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,251 | 3,520 | 1.19 | +996 bearers (+39.5%) | Up 2,198 places |
| 2020 | #8,261 | 3,842 | 1.29 | +322 bearers (+9.1%) | Up 990 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 Legaspi 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 | #9,251 | #8,261 | 10.7% |
| Count | 3,520 | 3,842 | 9.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.19 | 1.29 | 8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Legaspi bearers went from 3,520 to 3,842 (+9.1% change). The surname moved up 990 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,251 to #8,261.
FAQ
Legaspi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Legaspi?
Name Census estimates that about 4,406 living Americans carry the surname Legaspi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 77,793 residents.
How common is Legaspi?
Legaspi ranks #8,261 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.29 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 3,842 people with the surname Legaspi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,406), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.29 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.29 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 Legaspi.
Has Legaspi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Legaspi went from 3,520 recorded bearers to 3,842. That is an increase of 322 (+9.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,251 to #8,261.
What does the Census say about the background of Legaspi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Legaspi, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 69.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.8%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Legaspi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.3% (2,662 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Legaspi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (69.3%), Hispanic (20.8%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Legaspi (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 Legaspi mean?
A Basque surname derived from the place name Legazpi, meaning "place of the heather" or "a pasture with heather." 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 Legaspi (1.29 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 Legaspi?
See how many people have the surname Legaspi on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.