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

Madalena, 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 Madalena surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Madalena in America

Madalena is the 79338th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Madalena surname appeared 240 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 Madalena.

We can also compare 2010 data for Madalena 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 Madalena

The surname MADALENA has its origins in Portugal, dating back to the late Middle Ages. It is believed to be derived from the Portuguese word "Madalena," which is a variant of the name "Magdalena," referring to Mary Magdalene. This name was commonly given to girls born around the feast day of St. Mary Magdalene, which falls on July 22nd.

MADALENA is thought to have first emerged as a surname in the regions of northern Portugal, particularly in the areas around Porto and Braga. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in parish records and historical documents from the 15th and 16th centuries.

One notable historical reference to the surname MADALENA comes from the "Livro Velho de Linhagens" (Old Book of Lineages), a Portuguese genealogical text dating back to the 13th century. This manuscript mentions a nobleman named Gomes Madalena, who lived during the reign of King Afonso III (1210-1279).

In the 16th century, a prominent figure with the surname MADALENA was António Madalena, a Portuguese explorer and navigator who accompanied Ferdinand Magellan on his famous voyage around the world. António Madalena was born in Lisbon around 1490 and played a crucial role in the expedition, serving as the captain of one of the ships.

Another notable individual with the surname MADALENA was Manuel Madalena (1672-1743), a Portuguese painter and architect who worked in the Baroque style. He was renowned for his religious paintings and architectural designs, which can be found in various churches and buildings throughout Portugal.

In the 19th century, José Madalena (1825-1896) was a celebrated Portuguese poet and writer. He was a prominent figure in the Romantic movement in Portugal and is best known for his poetic works, such as "Cantos da Saudade" (Songs of Longing).

During the 20th century, Maria Madalena de Sousa Madalena (1910-1998) was a prominent Portuguese educator and women's rights activist. She dedicated her life to promoting education and advocating for gender equality in Portugal.

While the surname MADALENA is more commonly found in Portugal and among Portuguese diaspora communities, it has also been adopted in other parts of the world, often with slight variations in spelling or pronunciation due to linguistic and cultural influences.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Madalena

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!