2000
#3,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,215
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.42
Uncommon Last name
Monroy
A Spanish habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "hill of the king" or "red hill."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 16,921 Americans carry the last name Monroy. That puts it at #2,410 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 20,256 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Monroy 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
17K
1 in 20,256
Census rank
#2,410
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 14,756 bearers of the surname Monroy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2410th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Monroy, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Monroy
The surname Monroy originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish words "monte" meaning mountain and "rey" meaning king, indicating that the name may have referred to someone who lived near or owned a mountainous area ruled by a king.
Monroy can be traced back to the medieval Kingdom of Castile, where it was first recorded in the 12th century. Early spellings of the name included Monterrey and Monterrey, which suggest a connection to the town of Monterrey in the province of Salamanca.
One of the earliest documented references to the Monroy name is found in the Becerro de las Behetrías, a 14th-century manuscript that recorded details of landholdings and nobility in Castile. This record mentions several individuals with the surname Monroy, indicating their presence in the region at that time.
In the 15th century, the Monroy family played a prominent role in the Spanish conquest of the Canary Islands. Juan Monroy (c. 1410-1480) was a distinguished military leader who participated in the conquest and later served as the first governor of Gran Canaria.
Another notable figure with the Monroy surname was Pedro Monroy (c. 1460-1523), a Spanish explorer and conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the conquest of Mexico. He was among the first Spaniards to set foot in what is now Mexico City.
The Monroy name also appeared in the New World during the Spanish colonization of the Americas. One example is Cristóbal de Monroy (c. 1540-1615), a Spanish conquistador and explorer who participated in the conquest of Chile and later founded the city of San Luis Potosí in present-day Mexico.
In the 17th century, Alonso Monroy (1610-1672) was a Spanish playwright and poet known for his works in the Golden Age of Spanish literature. His plays were performed in the royal court and contributed to the development of Spanish theater.
Throughout history, the Monroy surname has been associated with influential individuals in various fields, including military, exploration, literature, and governance, particularly in Spain and its former colonies.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Monroy
Among Census respondents with the surname Monroy, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Monroy 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 Monroy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino93.0% · 13,729
- White5.3% · 783
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 134
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 43
- Black or African American0.3% · 38
- Two or more races0.2% · 29
Timeline
Historical Census data for Monroy
Monroy 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
#2,456
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,673
+5,458 bearers (+59.2%)
Per 100,000 4.97
Rank movement Up 1,084 places
2020
#2,410
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,756
+83 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 4.94
Rank movement Up 46 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,540 | 9,215 | 3.42 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,456 | 14,673 | 4.97 | +5,458 bearers (+59.2%) | Up 1,084 places |
| 2020 | #2,410 | 14,756 | 4.94 | +83 bearers (+0.6%) | Up 46 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 Monroy 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 | #2,456 | #2,410 | 1.9% |
| Count | 14,673 | 14,756 | 0.6% |
| Per 100K | 4.97 | 4.94 | -0.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Monroy bearers went from 14,673 to 14,756 (+0.6% change). The surname moved up 46 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,456 to #2,410.
FAQ
Monroy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Monroy?
Name Census estimates that about 16,921 living Americans carry the surname Monroy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 20,256 residents.
How common is Monroy?
Monroy ranks #2,410 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.94 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 14,756 people with the surname Monroy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (16,921), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.94 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Monroy.
Has Monroy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Monroy went from 14,673 recorded bearers to 14,756. That is an increase of 83 (+0.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,456 to #2,410.
What does the Census say about the background of Monroy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Monroy, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 93.0%. The next largest groups are White (5.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Monroy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.0% (13,729 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Monroy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (93.0%), White (5.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Monroy (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 Monroy mean?
A Spanish habitational surname derived from a place name meaning "hill of the king" or "red hill." 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 Monroy (4.94 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 Monroy?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.