2000
#13,674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,035
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.75
Rare Last name
Matute
A surname of Basque origin, possibly derived from the word "matu," meaning "bramble" or "thicket."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,820 Americans carry the last name Matute. That puts it at #6,443 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 58,892 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Matute 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
5.8K
1 in 58,892
Census rank
#6,443
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,075 bearers of the surname Matute in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6443rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Matute, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Matute
The surname Matute has its origins in Spain, dating back to the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Basque word "matu," which means "hazelnut." It is believed that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a hazelnut grove or worked with hazelnuts in some capacity.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Matute can be found in the Becerro de las Behetrias, a manuscript compiled in the 14th century that documented landowners and their properties in the region of Castile. This suggests that the name was already established in parts of northern Spain by this time.
In the 15th century, a notable figure named Juan Matute was a military commander who fought in the Reconquista, the campaign to expel the Moors from the Iberian Peninsula. He was a prominent figure in the battles against the Nasrid Kingdom of Granada.
The name Matute can also be linked to various place names in Spain, such as the village of Matute in the province of La Rioja, and the Matute Valley in the Basque Country. These locations may have been named after the hazelnut groves that once existed in those areas, or after individuals with the surname Matute who settled there.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Matute was Juan Matute y Gaviria, a Spanish politician and lawyer who lived in the 18th century (1666-1747). He served as the president of the Council of Castile, one of the highest positions in the Spanish government at the time.
Another noteworthy figure was Anselmo Matute (1794-1866), a Mexican lawyer and politician who played a significant role in the Mexican War of Independence and later served as the governor of the state of Puebla.
In the 20th century, Ana María Matute (1925-2014) was a renowned Spanish writer and a member of the Royal Spanish Academy. She was awarded numerous literary prizes, including the Cervantes Prize, the highest honor in Spanish literature.
The surname Matute has also been found in other parts of the world, likely due to Spanish emigration and colonization. For example, there are families with the name Matute in the Philippines, which was a Spanish colony for several centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Matute
Among Census respondents with the surname Matute, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Matute 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 Matute surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.0% · 4,618
- White4.3% · 217
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.4% · 124
- Black or African American1.9% · 98
- Two or more races0.3% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Matute
Matute 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
#8,478
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,892
+1,857 bearers (+91.3%)
Per 100,000 1.32
Rank movement Up 5,196 places
2020
#6,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,075
+1,183 bearers (+30.4%)
Per 100,000 1.70
Rank movement Up 2,035 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,674 | 2,035 | 0.75 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,478 | 3,892 | 1.32 | +1,857 bearers (+91.3%) | Up 5,196 places |
| 2020 | #6,443 | 5,075 | 1.70 | +1,183 bearers (+30.4%) | Up 2,035 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 Matute 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 | #8,478 | #6,443 | 24.0% |
| Count | 3,892 | 5,075 | 30.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.32 | 1.70 | 28.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Matute bearers went from 3,892 to 5,075 (+30.4% change). The surname moved up 2,035 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,478 to #6,443.
FAQ
Matute surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Matute?
Name Census estimates that about 5,820 living Americans carry the surname Matute. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 58,892 residents.
How common is Matute?
Matute ranks #6,443 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.70 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 5,075 people with the surname Matute. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,820), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.70 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 Matute.
Has Matute become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Matute went from 3,892 recorded bearers to 5,075. That is an increase of 1,183 (+30.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #8,478 to #6,443.
What does the Census say about the background of Matute?
Among Census respondents with the surname Matute, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.0%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.4%). 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 Matute in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (4,618 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Matute appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.0%), White (4.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.4%). 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 Matute (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 Matute mean?
A surname of Basque origin, possibly derived from the word "matu," meaning "bramble" or "thicket." 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 Matute (1.70 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 Matute?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.