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

Montoya, 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 Montoya surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Montoya in America

Montoya is the 459th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Montoya surname appeared 71,844 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 24 people would have the surname Montoya.

We can also compare 2010 data for Montoya 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 Montoya

The surname Montoya originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is derived from the Spanish words "monte" meaning mountain and "oya" meaning a small valley or hollow, suggesting that the name likely referred to someone who lived in a small valley surrounded by mountains.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Montoya can be found in the Becerro de las Behetrías de Castilla, a medieval census of landowners and vassals in the Kingdom of Castile, dated around 1352. This document mentions several individuals with the surname Montoya from various regions of northern Spain.

In the 15th century, the name Montoya appeared in several historical records and manuscripts, including the Catastro del Marqués de la Ensenada, a census conducted in the mid-18th century in the regions of Castile and León. This document lists numerous families with the surname Montoya, indicating their widespread presence throughout these regions.

Notable individuals with the surname Montoya throughout history include:

1. Rodrigo de Montoya (c. 1512-1587), a Spanish explorer and conquistador who participated in the conquest of the Philippines and helped establish Spanish settlements in the region.

2. Juan de Montoya (c. 1568-1628), a Spanish Jesuit missionary who worked among the Guaraní people in present-day Paraguay and Argentina, and authored several important works on the Guaraní language.

3. María de Montoya (c. 1610-1670), a Spanish noble and philanthropist known for her charitable work and support of religious organizations in Seville.

4. Gaspar de Montoya (c. 1670-1738), a Spanish military engineer who designed and oversaw the construction of several fortifications in colonial Mexico and Cuba.

5. Lope de Montoya (c. 1720-1786), a Spanish painter known for his religious works and portraits, many of which can be found in churches and museums throughout Spain.

The name Montoya has also been associated with various place names throughout Spain, such as Montoya de Valdueza, a municipality in the province of León, and Montoya, a village in the province of Burgos.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Montoya

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

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

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

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