2000
#5,990
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,293
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.96
Rare Last name
Monteiro
A Portuguese occupational surname referring to a hunter or gamekeeper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,783 Americans carry the last name Monteiro. That puts it at #4,503 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.56 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,025 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Monteiro 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 Monteiro with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.8K
1 in 39,025
Census rank
#4,503
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,659 bearers of the surname Monteiro in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.56 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4503rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Monteiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 48.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.7%) and Hispanic (7.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Monteiro
The surname Monteiro is of Portuguese origin and dates back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the word "monte," meaning "hill" or "mountain," and the suffix "-eiro," indicating a person from a particular place or associated with a specific occupation.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Monteiro can be found in medieval Portuguese documents and records, often referring to individuals who lived in or near mountainous regions or worked as mountain guides or foresters. Some scholars suggest that the name may have originated from a specific place name, such as Monte or Montemor, which were common town names in Portugal during that period.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Monteiro surname was João Monteiro, a Portuguese nobleman and military commander who lived in the 14th century. He played a crucial role in the Portuguese conquest of the Algarve region from the Moors in the late 13th century.
Another notable Monteiro was Fernão Monteiro, a 15th-century Portuguese explorer and navigator who participated in the early Portuguese expeditions along the West African coast. He is credited with discovering the Cape Verde Islands in 1456.
In the 16th century, Pedro Monteiro was a prominent Portuguese architect and engineer who designed and oversaw the construction of several fortifications and public buildings in Portugal and its colonies, including the Fortaleza de São Tiago in Funchal, Madeira.
During the 17th century, Frei Cristóvão Monteiro was a renowned Portuguese preacher and religious writer who served as the Bishop of Portalegre from 1626 to 1632. His sermons and literary works were widely read and influential in his time.
In more recent history, José Monteiro Mascarenhas (1846-1924) was a notable Portuguese politician and diplomat who served as the Minister of Foreign Affairs and President of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of Portugal in the late 19th century.
The surname Monteiro has since spread beyond Portugal to other parts of the world, particularly to former Portuguese colonies and regions with significant Portuguese immigration, such as Brazil, Mozambique, and parts of the United States and Canada.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Monteiro
Among Census respondents with the surname Monteiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 48.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.7%) and Hispanic (7.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Monteiro 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 Monteiro surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White48.6% · 3,722
- Black or African American31.7% · 2,431
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 540
- Two or more races6.4% · 490
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.7% · 437
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Monteiro
Monteiro 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
#5,036
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,965
+1,672 bearers (+31.6%)
Per 100,000 2.36
Rank movement Up 954 places
2020
#4,503
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,659
+694 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 2.56
Rank movement Up 533 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,990 | 5,293 | 1.96 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,036 | 6,965 | 2.36 | +1,672 bearers (+31.6%) | Up 954 places |
| 2020 | #4,503 | 7,659 | 2.56 | +694 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 533 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 Monteiro 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 | #5,036 | #4,503 | 10.6% |
| Count | 6,965 | 7,659 | 10.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.36 | 2.56 | 8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Monteiro bearers went from 6,965 to 7,659 (+10.0% change). The surname moved up 533 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,036 to #4,503.
FAQ
Monteiro surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Monteiro?
Name Census estimates that about 8,783 living Americans carry the surname Monteiro. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,025 residents.
How common is Monteiro?
Monteiro ranks #4,503 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.56 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,659 people with the surname Monteiro. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,783), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.56 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.56 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Monteiro.
Has Monteiro become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Monteiro went from 6,965 recorded bearers to 7,659. That is an increase of 694 (+10.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,036 to #4,503.
What does the Census say about the background of Monteiro?
Among Census respondents with the surname Monteiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 48.6%. The next largest groups are Black (31.7%) and Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Monteiro in the 2020 Census, accounting for 48.6% (3,722 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Monteiro appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (48.6%), Black (31.7%), Hispanic (7.1%). 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 Monteiro (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 Monteiro mean?
A Portuguese occupational surname referring to a hunter or gamekeeper. 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 Monteiro (2.56 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 last name Monteiro?
Want to know how common the surname Monteiro is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.