2000
#1,092
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 29,328
First available Census row
Per 100,000 10.87
Uncommon Last name
Lugo
A Spanish toponymic surname indicating an origin in the Galician city or province of Lugo.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 44,887 Americans carry the last name Lugo. That puts it at #873 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 13.10 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 7,636 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lugo 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
45K
1 in 7,636
Census rank
#873
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
13.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
39K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 39,144 bearers of the surname Lugo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 13.10 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 873rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lugo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.9%) and Black (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lugo
The surname Lugo has its origins in the northern regions of Spain, particularly in the region of Galicia. It is believed to have derived from the Latin word "lucus," which means "sacred grove" or "forest." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or was associated with a significant wooded area or sacred grove.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Lugo date back to the 12th and 13th centuries in various medieval documents from the Kingdom of Galicia and the neighboring regions of Asturias and León. One notable example is the mention of a nobleman named Rodrigo de Lugo in a charter from the year 1218, granting him lands in the vicinity of the city of Lugo.
The city of Lugo itself, located in the present-day autonomous community of Galicia, played a significant role in the early history of the surname. It was an important Roman settlement known as Lucus Augusti, and it is possible that the surname originated as a reference to individuals hailing from this ancient city or its surrounding areas.
Throughout the centuries, the surname Lugo has been associated with several notable individuals. One of the earliest recorded figures was Pedro de Lugo (c. 1475-1535), a Spanish conquistador who played a crucial role in the conquest of the Canary Islands and later served as the governor of Santa Marta, a Spanish colony in present-day Colombia.
Another prominent bearer of the surname was Álvaro de Lugo (c. 1495-1554), a Spanish nobleman and military commander who served as the governor of La Española (present-day Dominican Republic and Haiti) from 1535 to 1537. He was also involved in the conquest and colonization of various regions in Central America.
In the realm of literature, Juan Bautista de Lugo (1583-1660) was a notable Spanish Jesuit theologian and philosopher who made significant contributions to the development of moral theology and natural law theory during the 17th century.
The surname Lugo also has a notable presence in the New World, particularly in Latin American countries. One example is the Mexican general Dolores del Río Lugo (1857-1926), who played a crucial role in the Mexican Revolution and served as the governor of the state of Chihuahua from 1918 to 1919.
Finally, Pedro de Lugo y Navarro (1668-1735), a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator, served as the governor of Florida and later as the governor of Panama in the early 18th century, leaving a lasting impact on the Spanish colonial administration in the Americas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lugo
Among Census respondents with the surname Lugo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.9%) and Black (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Lugo 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 Lugo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.0% · 35,614
- White6.9% · 2,688
- Black or African American1.1% · 412
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 161
- Two or more races0.4% · 146
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 123
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lugo
Lugo 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
#913
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 37,903
+8,575 bearers (+29.2%)
Per 100,000 12.85
Rank movement Up 179 places
2020
#873
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 39,144
+1,241 bearers (+3.3%)
Per 100,000 13.10
Rank movement Up 40 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,092 | 29,328 | 10.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #913 | 37,903 | 12.85 | +8,575 bearers (+29.2%) | Up 179 places |
| 2020 | #873 | 39,144 | 13.10 | +1,241 bearers (+3.3%) | Up 40 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 Lugo 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 | #913 | #873 | 4.4% |
| Count | 37,903 | 39,144 | 3.3% |
| Per 100K | 12.85 | 13.10 | 1.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lugo bearers went from 37,903 to 39,144 (+3.3% change). The surname moved up 40 positions in the national ranking, going from #913 to #873.
FAQ
Lugo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lugo?
Name Census estimates that about 44,887 living Americans carry the surname Lugo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 7,636 residents.
How common is Lugo?
Lugo ranks #873 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 13.10 per 100,000 residents, which is about 13 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 39,144 people with the surname Lugo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (44,887), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 13.1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 13.10 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 13 of them to have the surname Lugo.
Has Lugo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lugo went from 37,903 recorded bearers to 39,144. That is an increase of 1,241 (+3.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #913 to #873.
What does the Census say about the background of Lugo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lugo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (6.9%) and Black (1.1%). 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 Lugo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (35,614 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lugo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.0%), White (6.9%), Black (1.1%). 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 Lugo (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 Lugo mean?
A Spanish toponymic surname indicating an origin in the Galician city or province of Lugo. 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 Lugo (13.10 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 Lugo?
You can see how many people are called Lugo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.