2000
#7,286
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,217
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.56
Rare Last name
Montana
A surname of Spanish origin meaning "mountain" or "mountainous," referring to someone who lived in or near mountains.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,023 Americans carry the last name Montana. That puts it at #7,333 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.47 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 68,237 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Montana 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Montana with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.0K
1 in 68,237
Census rank
#7,333
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,380 bearers of the surname Montana in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.47 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7333rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Montana, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (32.8%) and Black (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Montana
Among Census respondents with the surname Montana, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (32.8%) and Black (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Montana 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 Montana surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.7% · 2,441
- Hispanic or Latino32.8% · 1,436
- Black or African American3.4% · 151
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 119
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.7% · 117
- Two or more races2.6% · 116
Timeline
Historical Census data for Montana
Montana 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
#7,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,744
+527 bearers (+12.5%)
Per 100,000 1.61
Rank movement Up 232 places
2020
#7,333
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,380
-364 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Down 279 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,286 | 4,217 | 1.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,054 | 4,744 | 1.61 | +527 bearers (+12.5%) | Up 232 places |
| 2020 | #7,333 | 4,380 | 1.47 | -364 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 279 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 Montana 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 | #7,054 | #7,333 | -4.0% |
| Count | 4,744 | 4,380 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.61 | 1.47 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Montana bearers went from 4,744 to 4,380 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 279 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,054 to #7,333.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Montana
FAQ
Montana surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Montana?
Name Census estimates that about 5,023 living Americans carry the surname Montana. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 68,237 residents.
How common is Montana?
Montana ranks #7,333 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.47 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 4,380 people with the surname Montana. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.47 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.47 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 Montana.
Has Montana become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Montana went from 4,744 recorded bearers to 4,380. That is a decrease of 364 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,054 to #7,333.
What does the Census say about the background of Montana?
Among Census respondents with the surname Montana, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (32.8%) and Black (3.4%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Montana in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.7% (2,441 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Montana appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (55.7%), Hispanic (32.8%), Black (3.4%). 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 Montana (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 Montana mean?
A surname of Spanish origin meaning "mountain" or "mountainous," referring to someone who lived in or near mountains. 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 Montana (1.47 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 share the surname Montana?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.