2000
#8,000
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,828
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.42
Rare Last name
Marmolejo
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Marmolejo in Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,657 Americans carry the last name Marmolejo. That puts it at #6,592 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,589 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Marmolejo 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
5.7K
1 in 60,589
Census rank
#6,592
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,933 bearers of the surname Marmolejo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6592nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Marmolejo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.4%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Marmolejo
The surname Marmolejo originates from Spain, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish words "mármol" (meaning marble) and "lejo" (meaning far), suggesting a possible connection to a place located far from a marble quarry or a town known for its marble production.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Marmolejo can be found in the 13th-century "Repartimiento de Sevilla," a document detailing the distribution of land and properties in the city of Seville after its conquest by King Ferdinand III of Castile in 1248. The document mentions individuals bearing the surname Marmolejo, indicating their presence in the area during that time.
The surname Marmolejo may also have connections to various place names in Spain, such as the town of Marmolejo in the province of Jaén, Andalusia. This town's name possibly influenced the formation of the surname or vice versa, as it was common for surnames to be derived from place names during the Middle Ages.
Notable historical figures with the surname Marmolejo include Juan de Marmolejo, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru in the 16th century. Another prominent individual was Fray Pedro de Marmolejo, a Franciscan friar and missionary who lived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries and was involved in the evangelization efforts in the New World.
In the 17th century, Cristóbal de Marmolejo was a Spanish painter known for his religious works, including paintings found in churches in Seville and its surroundings. Additionally, Alonso de Marmolejo y Sotomayor, born in 1576 in Jaén, was a Spanish nobleman and military commander who served in the War of the Mantuan Succession in the early 17th century.
Another notable figure was Pedro de Marmolejo, a Spanish soldier and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés during the conquest of Mexico in the early 16th century. He played a role in the fall of the Aztec Empire and later served as a colonial administrator in New Spain.
While the surname Marmolejo has its roots in Spain, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly to regions with Spanish colonial influence, such as Latin America.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Marmolejo
Among Census respondents with the surname Marmolejo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.4%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Marmolejo 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 Marmolejo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino93.4% · 4,606
- White5.0% · 247
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 35
- Black or African American0.3% · 17
- Two or more races0.3% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Marmolejo
Marmolejo 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
#6,500
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,221
+1,393 bearers (+36.4%)
Per 100,000 1.77
Rank movement Up 1,500 places
2020
#6,592
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,933
-288 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 1.65
Rank movement Down 92 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,000 | 3,828 | 1.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,500 | 5,221 | 1.77 | +1,393 bearers (+36.4%) | Up 1,500 places |
| 2020 | #6,592 | 4,933 | 1.65 | -288 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 92 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 Marmolejo 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 | #6,500 | #6,592 | -1.4% |
| Count | 5,221 | 4,933 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.77 | 1.65 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Marmolejo bearers went from 5,221 to 4,933 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 92 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,500 to #6,592.
FAQ
Marmolejo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Marmolejo?
Name Census estimates that about 5,657 living Americans carry the surname Marmolejo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,589 residents.
How common is Marmolejo?
Marmolejo ranks #6,592 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.65 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,933 people with the surname Marmolejo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,657), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.65 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Marmolejo.
Has Marmolejo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Marmolejo went from 5,221 recorded bearers to 4,933. That is a decrease of 288 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,500 to #6,592.
What does the Census say about the background of Marmolejo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Marmolejo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.4%. The next largest groups are White (5.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%). 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 Marmolejo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (4,606 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Marmolejo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (93.4%), White (5.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%). 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 Marmolejo (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 Marmolejo mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Marmolejo in Spain. 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 Marmolejo (1.65 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 share the surname Marmolejo?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.