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

Leitão, 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 Leitão surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Leitão in America

Leitão is the 37288th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Leitão surname appeared 598 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Leitão.

We can also compare 2010 data for Leitão 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 Leitão

The surname Leitao has its origins in Portugal, where it first appeared in the late medieval period. Derived from the Portuguese word "leitão," meaning "piglet" or "young pig," the name likely referred to an occupation or nickname relating to the raising or selling of pigs.

In the 14th century, the Leitao surname can be found in records from the northern Portuguese regions of Minho and Douro Litoral, suggesting its early prevalence in these areas. Some variations in spelling, such as Leytão and Leytam, were also common during this time.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Leitao name is in the "Livro Velho de Linhagens" (Old Book of Lineages), a Portuguese genealogical manuscript from the late 13th century. This text references a nobleman named Gonçalo Leitão, who lived during the reign of King Afonso III (1248-1279).

In the 15th century, the Leitao surname gained prominence with the birth of Pedro Leitão (1430-1490), a renowned Portuguese poet and humanist scholar. His works, including the poetry collection "Cancioneiro Geral," were influential during the early Renaissance period.

Another notable figure was Fernão Leitão (1520-1585), a Portuguese explorer and navigator who accompanied the Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro on his expeditions to Peru in the 1530s. Leitão played a crucial role in the conquest of the Inca Empire and later served as a governor in various South American regions.

The 17th century saw the birth of Miguel Leitão de Andrada (1629-1694), a prominent Portuguese Jesuit priest and theologian. His works, such as "Itinerario Paradoxal" and "Miscelânea Predicável," were widely read and influential in religious and literary circles of the time.

In the realm of arts, Manuel Leitão (1705-1766) was a celebrated Portuguese painter and architect. His works adorned many churches and palaces in Portugal, including the iconic Águas Livres Aqueduct in Lisbon, which he helped design.

The Leitao name continued to spread throughout the Portuguese-speaking world, with notable individuals like José Leitão de Barros (1896-1967), a Brazilian poet and journalist who played a significant role in the Brazilian Modernist movement.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Leitão

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

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

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

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