2000
#10,524
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,797
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.04
Rare Last name
Marrufo
A Spanish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for a clever person.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,006 Americans carry the last name Marrufo. That puts it at #8,987 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,560 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Marrufo 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
4.0K
1 in 85,560
Census rank
#8,987
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,493 bearers of the surname Marrufo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8987th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Marrufo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (4.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Marrufo
The surname Marrufo is of Spanish origin, originating in the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura in southern Spain during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Arabic word "murru," meaning "bitter," and the Latin suffix "-ufus," meaning "with a color or appearance of." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone with a swarthy or dark complexion.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Marrufo surname can be found in the "Repartimiento de Sevilla," a document from the 13th century that recorded the distribution of land and property among the Christian conquerors of the city of Seville after its reconquest from the Moors in 1248. This indicates that the name was already in use by that time.
In the 16th century, during the Spanish colonization of the Americas, several individuals bearing the Marrufo surname made their way to the New World. One notable example is Juan Marrufo, a conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 1500s.
Another significant figure in the history of the Marrufo name is Pedro Marrufo de Navarra, a Spanish soldier and explorer who was part of the expeditions led by Francisco Vásquez de Coronado in the 1540s, exploring what is now the southwestern United States and northern Mexico.
In the 17th century, the Marrufo surname can be found in various historical records from Spain, such as baptismal and marriage registers. One prominent individual was Diego Marrufo y Avellaneda, a Spanish playwright and poet who lived from 1614 to 1678.
In the 18th century, the name appears in records from various regions of Spain, as well as in the Spanish colonies in the Americas. One notable figure was Manuel Marrufo, a Spanish military officer who served in the Viceroyalty of New Spain (present-day Mexico) in the late 1700s.
As the centuries passed, the Marrufo surname continued to spread throughout Spain and the Spanish-speaking world, with individuals bearing this name making contributions in various fields, including literature, politics, and the arts. However, it is important to note that specific details about many of these individuals may be limited due to the passage of time and the scarcity of historical records.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Marrufo
Among Census respondents with the surname Marrufo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (4.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Marrufo 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 Marrufo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.8% · 3,241
- White4.2% · 148
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 77
- Two or more races0.5% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 6
- Black or African American0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Marrufo
Marrufo 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
#9,017
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,626
+829 bearers (+29.6%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Up 1,507 places
2020
#8,987
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,493
-133 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Up 30 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,524 | 2,797 | 1.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,017 | 3,626 | 1.23 | +829 bearers (+29.6%) | Up 1,507 places |
| 2020 | #8,987 | 3,493 | 1.17 | -133 bearers (-3.7%) | Up 30 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 Marrufo 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 | #9,017 | #8,987 | 0.3% |
| Count | 3,626 | 3,493 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.23 | 1.17 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Marrufo bearers went from 3,626 to 3,493 (-3.7% change). The surname moved up 30 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,017 to #8,987.
FAQ
Marrufo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Marrufo?
Name Census estimates that about 4,006 living Americans carry the surname Marrufo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,560 residents.
How common is Marrufo?
Marrufo ranks #8,987 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.17 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 3,493 people with the surname Marrufo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,006), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.17 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 Marrufo.
Has Marrufo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Marrufo went from 3,626 recorded bearers to 3,493. That is a decrease of 133 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,017 to #8,987.
What does the Census say about the background of Marrufo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Marrufo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (4.2%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (2.2%). 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 Marrufo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (3,241 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Marrufo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.8%), White (4.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (2.2%). 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 Marrufo (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 Marrufo mean?
A Spanish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from a place name or a nickname for a clever person. 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 Marrufo (1.17 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 Marrufo?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.