2000
#21,776
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Merlos
A Spanish surname derived from the word "merlo", meaning blackbird.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,412 Americans carry the last name Merlos. That puts it at #13,774 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,104 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merlos 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
2.4K
1 in 142,104
Census rank
#13,774
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,103 bearers of the surname Merlos in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13774th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Black (0.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merlos
The surname Merlos has its origins in Spain, with records dating back to the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "merlo," which means blackbird. This suggests that the name may have been originally used as a nickname or occupational surname for someone who worked with these birds, perhaps a bird catcher or breeder.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Merlos can be found in the 1497 census records of the Kingdom of Castile. A certain Juan Merlos is listed as a resident of the town of Burgos. There are also references to a family named Merlos in the municipal archives of the city of Seville from the early 16th century.
The name Merlos appears to have spread from its origins in central and southern Spain to other regions of the Iberian Peninsula and the Americas during the colonial era. In the 16th and 17th centuries, several Merlos individuals are recorded as settlers or conquistadors in various parts of Spanish colonial territories, such as Mexico and Peru.
One notable figure bearing the Merlos name was Diego Merlos, a Spanish conquistador born in Seville around 1520. He participated in the conquest of Peru under Francisco Pizarro and later served as a colonial administrator in the Viceroyalty of Peru.
Another historically significant individual was Fray Juan Merlos, a Franciscan friar born in Córdoba, Spain, in the late 16th century. He traveled to New Spain (present-day Mexico) as a missionary and is credited with founding several missions and contributing to the spread of Christianity in the region.
In the 18th century, a prominent figure named Antonio Merlos y Cabrera (1734-1810) served as a military officer and colonial administrator in Spanish Louisiana and Puerto Rico.
During the 19th century, a notable figure was Manuel Merlos, a Spanish painter and illustrator born in Seville in 1835. He is known for his works depicting scenes from everyday life in Andalusia.
Despite its Spanish origins, the surname Merlos has also been found in other parts of Europe, such as Italy and France, likely due to migration patterns and intermarriage over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merlos
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Black (0.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Merlos 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 Merlos surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.1% · 2,001
- White4.1% · 86
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.2% · 4
- Two or more races0.2% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merlos
Merlos 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
#15,520
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,886
+772 bearers (+69.3%)
Per 100,000 0.64
Rank movement Up 6,256 places
2020
#13,774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,103
+217 bearers (+11.5%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 1,746 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,776 | 1,114 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,520 | 1,886 | 0.64 | +772 bearers (+69.3%) | Up 6,256 places |
| 2020 | #13,774 | 2,103 | 0.70 | +217 bearers (+11.5%) | Up 1,746 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 Merlos 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 | #15,520 | #13,774 | 11.3% |
| Count | 1,886 | 2,103 | 11.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.64 | 0.70 | 9.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merlos bearers went from 1,886 to 2,103 (+11.5% change). The surname moved up 1,746 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,520 to #13,774.
FAQ
Merlos surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merlos?
Name Census estimates that about 2,412 living Americans carry the surname Merlos. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,104 residents.
How common is Merlos?
Merlos ranks #13,774 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,103 people with the surname Merlos. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,412), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Merlos.
Has Merlos become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merlos went from 1,886 recorded bearers to 2,103. That is an increase of 217 (+11.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,520 to #13,774.
What does the Census say about the background of Merlos?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.1%. The next largest groups are White (4.1%) and Black (0.3%). 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 Merlos in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.1% (2,001 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merlos appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.1%), White (4.1%), Black (0.3%). 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 Merlos (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 Merlos mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the word "merlo", meaning blackbird. 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 Merlos (0.70 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 have the surname Merlos?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.