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

Mercedes, 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 Mercedes surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mercedes in America

Mercedes is the 7767th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mercedes surname appeared 4,272 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Mercedes.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mercedes 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 Mercedes

The surname Mercedes is of Spanish origin, deriving from the Spanish word "merced," which means "mercy" or "grace." It is believed to have emerged as a surname in the 15th or 16th century, during the height of the Spanish Empire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mercedes can be found in the records of the city of Seville, Spain, where a family bearing the name is mentioned in the late 16th century. The name was likely adopted as a surname by individuals who lived near a church or monastery dedicated to Our Lady of Mercy (Nuestra Señora de las Mercedes).

In the 17th century, the surname Mercedes began to spread throughout Spain and its colonies in the Americas. It is possible that some individuals with this surname were among the early Spanish settlers who established settlements in regions such as Mexico, Peru, and Argentina.

One notable figure with the surname Mercedes was Don Juan de Mercedes, a Spanish military officer who served in the Spanish Army during the 18th century. He was born in Madrid in 1710 and was known for his bravery and leadership during various campaigns against the French and the Moors.

Another famous bearer of the surname Mercedes was María de las Mercedes, a Spanish noblewoman who lived in the late 18th century. She was born in Seville in 1765 and was known for her philanthropy and support for the arts.

In the 19th century, the surname Mercedes continued to be found throughout Spain and Latin America. One prominent individual with this surname was José María Mercedes, a Mexican politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs for Mexico in the 1850s.

In the early 20th century, the surname Mercedes gained further recognition with the rise of the Mercedes-Benz automobile company, which was founded in Germany in 1926. However, this company's name was derived from the first name of one of its founders, Adolf Daimler's daughter Mercedes, rather than the surname.

Throughout history, the surname Mercedes has been linked to several notable families and individuals, reflecting its Spanish roots and the spread of the name across the Spanish-speaking world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mercedes

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

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

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