2000
#15,509
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,733
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.64
Rare Last name
Minaya
Derived from a place name referring to a village in Álava, Spain, or from the Basque word "mina" meaning "mine."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,172 Americans carry the last name Minaya. That puts it at #10,984 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,056 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Minaya 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
3.2K
1 in 108,056
Census rank
#10,984
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,766 bearers of the surname Minaya in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10984th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Minaya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.4%) and Black (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Minaya
Among Census respondents with the surname Minaya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.4%) and Black (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Minaya 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 Minaya surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino93.5% · 2,587
- White3.4% · 94
- Black or African American1.4% · 39
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 36
- Two or more races0.3% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Minaya
Minaya 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
#12,729
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,425
+692 bearers (+39.9%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Up 2,780 places
2020
#10,984
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,766
+341 bearers (+14.1%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 1,745 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,509 | 1,733 | 0.64 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,729 | 2,425 | 0.82 | +692 bearers (+39.9%) | Up 2,780 places |
| 2020 | #10,984 | 2,766 | 0.93 | +341 bearers (+14.1%) | Up 1,745 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 Minaya 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 | #12,729 | #10,984 | 13.7% |
| Count | 2,425 | 2,766 | 14.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.82 | 0.93 | 12.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Minaya bearers went from 2,425 to 2,766 (+14.1% change). The surname moved up 1,745 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,729 to #10,984.
FAQ
Minaya surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Minaya?
Name Census estimates that about 3,172 living Americans carry the surname Minaya. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,056 residents.
How common is Minaya?
Minaya ranks #10,984 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.93 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 2,766 people with the surname Minaya. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,172), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.93 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 Minaya.
Has Minaya become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Minaya went from 2,425 recorded bearers to 2,766. That is an increase of 341 (+14.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,729 to #10,984.
What does the Census say about the background of Minaya?
Among Census respondents with the surname Minaya, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.5%. The next largest groups are White (3.4%) and Black (1.4%). 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 Minaya in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.5% (2,587 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Minaya appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (93.5%), White (3.4%), Black (1.4%). 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 Minaya (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 Minaya mean?
Derived from a place name referring to a village in Álava, Spain, or from the Basque word "mina" meaning "mine." 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 Minaya (0.93 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 common is the surname Minaya?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Minaya at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.