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

Montejo, 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 Montejo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Montejo in America

Montejo is the 16887th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Montejo surname appeared 1,687 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Montejo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Montejo 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 Montejo

The surname Montejo is of Spanish origin, tracing its roots back to the medieval period in Spain. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "monte," meaning "mountain," and the suffix "-ejo," indicating a diminutive form. This suggests that the name originally referred to a small mountain or hill.

One of the earliest recorded occurrences of the Montejo surname can be found in documents from the 16th century, during the Spanish conquest of the Americas. In 1527, Francisco de Montejo, a Spanish conquistador, led an expedition to the Yucatan Peninsula in present-day Mexico. He established a settlement called Salamanca de Campeche, which later became the city of Campeche.

Another notable figure bearing the Montejo name was Francisco de Montejo y León, the son of the conquistador. He was born in 1539 and played a significant role in the conquest of the Yucatan Peninsula, serving as the governor of the region from 1567 to 1579.

In the 17th century, the Montejo surname appeared in various records, including baptismal and marriage registers, in various regions of Spain, particularly in Castile and Andalusia. This suggests that the name had spread across the country by that time.

Moving forward to the 18th century, Juan Montejo was a Spanish military officer who served in the Spanish American War of Independence. He was born in 1780 and participated in several battles against the revolutionary forces in what is now Venezuela and Colombia.

In the 19th century, Mariano Montejo was a prominent Mexican politician and military leader. Born in 1818, he served as the governor of the Yucatan Peninsula from 1858 to 1859 and played a crucial role in the region's struggle for independence from Mexico.

While the surname Montejo has its origins in Spain, it has since spread to other Spanish-speaking countries, particularly in Latin America, due to migration and the Spanish colonial era. The name has also been associated with various place names, such as Montejo de la Sierra, a municipality in the province of Madrid, Spain.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Montejo

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

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

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

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