Mentis last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Mentis

A Latinized surname derived from the word "mens," meaning "mind" or "intellect."

Mentis, 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 Mentis surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mentis in America

Mentis is the 105600th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mentis surname appeared 169 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 Mentis.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mentis 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 105600 97848 7.62%
Count 169 172 -1.76%
Proportion per 100k 0.06 0.06 0.00%

The history of the last name Mentis

The surname Mentis originates from Greece, with its earliest recorded usage dating back to the 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the Greek word "mentis," which translates to "mind" or "intellect." This linguistic root suggests that the surname may have initially been associated with individuals who were regarded for their mental acuity or scholarly pursuits.

One of the earliest documented bearers of the Mentis surname was Andreas Mentis, a Greek philosopher and scholar who lived in the late 15th century. His writings on logic and metaphysics were highly regarded during his lifetime and helped establish the intellectual foundations of the Renaissance in Greece.

In the 16th century, the Mentis surname appeared in various historical records from the island of Crete, particularly in the city of Chania. This region was known for its thriving intellectual and cultural centers, and it is likely that the name gained prominence among the educated classes of the time.

During the 17th century, the Mentis surname spread to other parts of Greece, including the mainland regions of Athens and Thessaloniki. Notable figures from this period include Petros Mentis (1620-1692), a renowned Greek mathematician and astronomer who contributed significantly to the advancement of celestial navigation.

As the centuries progressed, the Mentis surname continued to be associated with individuals who excelled in various fields of academia and intellectual pursuits. In the 19th century, Georgios Mentis (1812-1878) was a renowned Greek philologist and linguist, known for his groundbreaking work on the preservation and study of ancient Greek texts.

Another prominent bearer of the Mentis surname was Alexandros Mentis (1870-1944), a Greek politician and statesman who served as the Prime Minister of Greece from 1935 to 1936. His leadership during a turbulent period in Greek history earned him a place in the annals of modern Greek politics.

While the Mentis surname has its roots in Greece, it has also found its way to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, its primary association with intellectual and scholarly endeavors remains a defining characteristic of this historic name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mentis

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

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 Mentis was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 68.64% 116
Non-Hispanic Black Only 24.26% 41
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 4.14% 7
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Mentis has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 68.64% 73.84% -7.30%
Black 24.26% 20.93% 14.74%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races 4.14% 4.07% 1.71%
Hispanic (S)% (S)% (S)%

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Mentis, 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!

"Mentis last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on June 26, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/mentis-surname-popularity/.

"Mentis last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/mentis-surname-popularity/. Accessed 26 June, 2025

Mentis last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/mentis-surname-popularity/.

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