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

Montana, 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 Montana surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Montana in America

Montana is the 7054th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Montana surname appeared 4,744 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Montana.

We can also compare 2010 data for Montana 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 Montana

The surname Montana originated in Italy, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 14th century. It is believed to be derived from the Italian word "montagna," which means "mountain," suggesting that the name was initially given to someone who lived near or in a mountainous region.

One of the earliest known references to the Montana surname can be found in the records of the Florentine Republic, where a Giovanni di Montana is mentioned as a citizen of Florence in the year 1382. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.

During the Renaissance period, the Montana surname gained prominence in various parts of Italy. Notably, Bartolomeo Montana, a renowned painter from Genoa, lived between 1470 and 1525 and is known for his contributions to the Italian Renaissance art movement.

In the 16th century, the name appears in historical records from the Republic of Venice, where a family of prominent Venetian merchants and traders bore the Montana surname. One such individual was Marco Montana, who was a successful merchant and trader in the Mediterranean region during the late 1500s.

As the centuries passed, the Montana surname spread across Italy and beyond. In the 18th century, Giuseppe Montana, an Italian architect and engineer, was born in 1720 and is noted for his work on various architectural projects in Naples and the surrounding regions.

Moving into the 19th century, the Montana surname gained recognition in the literary world with the Italian writer and poet, Tommaso Montana, who lived from 1805 to 1877. His works, which often explored themes of nature and the mountain landscapes of Italy, contributed to the romantic literature movement of the time.

Another notable figure with the Montana surname was Maria Montana, an Italian operatic soprano who lived from 1850 to 1915. She gained acclaim for her performances in various operas across Europe, particularly in the works of Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini.

As the name spread beyond Italy, it can be found in various other regions, particularly in areas with significant Italian migration. For example, in the United States, the Montana surname is often associated with Italian-American communities, reflecting the historical movement of Italian immigrants to the country.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Montana

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

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

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

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