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

Melindez, 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 Melindez surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Melindez in America

Melindez is the 140157th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Melindez surname appeared 119 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 Melindez.

We can also compare 2010 data for Melindez 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 Melindez

The surname MELINDEZ is believed to have originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Spanish given name Melendo, which itself comes from the Latin name Aemilius. This was a common Roman family name that was later adopted as a personal name during the era of the Roman Empire's rule over parts of the Iberian Peninsula.

In its earliest forms, the name may have been spelled as Melendo, Melendez, or Melendiz. These variations likely arose from regional differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions across the various kingdoms and territories that made up medieval Spain. The addition of the "ez" suffix was a common practice in Spanish surnames, often indicating familial or patronymic lineage.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the MELINDEZ surname dates back to the 11th century, when a nobleman named Fernán Melindez was mentioned in a document from the Kingdom of León. This suggests that the name had already become established as a hereditary surname by that time.

In the 13th century, a poet and troubadour named Juan Melindez de Ribera gained fame for his contributions to the literary tradition of the Galician-Portuguese lyric. He was born in the town of Ribera del Fresno, which may be connected to the origins of the surname's place name associations.

During the 15th century, a knight named Rodrigo Melindez de Valdés served under King Juan II of Castile and was involved in the conflicts against the Kingdom of Aragon. He is mentioned in several historical accounts of the time, further cementing the presence of the MELINDEZ name among the Spanish nobility and military ranks.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Fray Melchor Melindez de la Cadena, a Spanish friar and author who lived in the 16th century. He wrote several religious texts and was known for his sermons and involvement in the Catholic Church's activities in Spain during the Counter-Reformation period.

In more recent centuries, the MELINDEZ surname has continued to be found throughout Spain and its former territories, as well as in other Spanish-speaking regions of the world. However, the focus of this report is on the name's historical origins and early documented instances, rather than modern demographic data.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Melindez

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

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

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

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