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

Minaya, 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 Minaya surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Minaya in America

Minaya is the 12729th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Minaya surname appeared 2,425 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 Minaya.

We can also compare 2010 data for Minaya 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 Minaya

The surname Minaya is of Spanish origin, derived from the Arabic name "Mina'ya." It is believed to have originated in the region of Andalusia, in southern Spain, during the Moorish occupation period between the 8th and 15th centuries.

The name Minaya is thought to have been derived from the Arabic word "mina'a," meaning "fortress" or "stronghold." This suggests that the name may have been given to individuals who lived near or were associated with a particular fortified location or settlement.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Minaya can be found in the epic poem "El Cantar de Mio Cid," which dates back to the 12th century. In this poem, Minaya is the surname of Alvar Fáñez, a loyal companion and advisor to the legendary Castilian hero El Cid Campeador.

During the Reconquista, the period when Christian kingdoms in the Iberian Peninsula sought to regain control of territories occupied by the Moors, the name Minaya was likely adopted by families who had settled in areas previously under Moorish rule.

Notable individuals with the surname Minaya include:

1. Gonzalo de Minaya (c. 1050 - c. 1115), a Spanish military leader and one of El Cid's most trusted lieutenants during the Reconquista.
2. Pedro Minaya (c. 1300 - c. 1370), a Spanish explorer and navigator who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493.
3. Juan de Minaya (c. 1450 - c. 1520), a Spanish architect and master builder responsible for the construction of several notable churches and cathedrals in Andalusia.
4. Antonio Minaya (1759 - 1828), a Spanish military officer and politician who served as the Governor of Puerto Rico from 1808 to 1809.
5. Gustavo Minaya (1885 - 1957), a Dominican politician and diplomat who served as the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the United States from 1935 to 1940.

The name Minaya has also been associated with various place names in Spain, such as Minaya de Cabezón, a municipality in the province of Burgos, and Minaya de Almazán, a village in the province of Soria.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Minaya

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

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

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

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