2000
#23,391
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,014
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.38
Rare Last name
Najarro
A Spanish surname derived from the place name Najera in La Rioja, Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,334 Americans carry the last name Najarro. That puts it at #14,165 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 146,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Najarro 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.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 146,853
Census rank
#14,165
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,035 bearers of the surname Najarro in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14165th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Najarro, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Najarro
The surname Najarro has its origins in Spain, traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to derive from the Arabic word "najjar," which means "carpenter" or "woodworker." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have been craftsmen involved in woodworking trades.
Najarro is a variant spelling of the more common Spanish surname Navarro, which also has Arabic roots and is derived from the word "navarr," meaning "from Navarre." This indicates that some of the earliest Najarro families may have originated from the northern Spanish region of Navarre.
Historical references to the Najarro surname can be found in various medieval documents, such as property deeds and municipal records from cities like Seville, Granada, and Cordoba. One notable mention is in the Repartimiento de Sevilla, a 13th-century record detailing the distribution of land and property after the Christian conquest of Seville.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Najarro surname was Juan Najarro, a 14th-century merchant from Seville who traded in goods like wool and olive oil. Another was Pedro Najarro, a 15th-century military captain who fought in the Reconquista campaigns against the Moors.
During the 16th century, the Najarro family expanded their presence in Spain, with branches settling in regions like Andalusia, Castile, and Aragon. Alonso Najarro (1490-1560) was a renowned architect who designed several churches and buildings in the city of Toledo.
As the Spanish Empire grew, the Najarro surname spread to the Americas and other territories. Juan Najarro (1540-1615) was a conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru and later became a landowner in colonial Mexico.
In the 18th century, Ignacio Najarro (1720-1788) was a prominent lawyer and academic who taught at the University of Salamanca and authored several legal treatises.
Other notable individuals with the Najarro surname include Josefa Najarro (1810-1888), a 19th-century writer and poet from Seville, and Emilio Najarro (1865-1932), a Spanish politician and diplomat who served as ambassador to several countries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Najarro
Among Census respondents with the surname Najarro, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Najarro 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 Najarro surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.5% · 1,862
- White4.3% · 88
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.0% · 61
- Black or African American0.5% · 11
- Two or more races0.5% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Najarro
Najarro 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
#20,076
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,331
+317 bearers (+31.3%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Up 3,315 places
2020
#14,165
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,035
+704 bearers (+52.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 5,911 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #23,391 | 1,014 | 0.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #20,076 | 1,331 | 0.45 | +317 bearers (+31.3%) | Up 3,315 places |
| 2020 | #14,165 | 2,035 | 0.68 | +704 bearers (+52.9%) | Up 5,911 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 Najarro 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 | #20,076 | #14,165 | 29.4% |
| Count | 1,331 | 2,035 | 52.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.45 | 0.68 | 51.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Najarro bearers went from 1,331 to 2,035 (+52.9% change). The surname moved up 5,911 positions in the national ranking, going from #20,076 to #14,165.
FAQ
Najarro surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Najarro?
Name Census estimates that about 2,334 living Americans carry the surname Najarro. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 146,853 residents.
How common is Najarro?
Najarro ranks #14,165 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,035 people with the surname Najarro. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,334), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Najarro.
Has Najarro become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Najarro went from 1,331 recorded bearers to 2,035. That is an increase of 704 (+52.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #20,076 to #14,165.
What does the Census say about the background of Najarro?
Among Census respondents with the surname Najarro, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.5%. The next largest groups are White (4.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.0%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Najarro in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (1,862 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Najarro appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.5%), White (4.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.0%). 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 Najarro (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 Najarro mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the place name Najera in La Rioja, Spain. 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 Najarro (0.68 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 common is the surname Najarro?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Najarro at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.