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

Nieves, 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 Nieves surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nieves in America

Nieves is the 1004th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nieves surname appeared 34,896 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 12 people would have the surname Nieves.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nieves 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 Nieves

The surname "NIEVES" originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Spanish word "nieve," which means "snow." The name likely referred to someone who lived in a snowy or mountainous region or had a fair complexion.

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various Spanish historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), written during the reign of King Alfonso XI in the 14th century, which mentions a person named Nieves de Castilla.

In the 15th century, the name appeared in the "Crónica de Juan II" (Chronicle of John II), which recorded the life and reign of King John II of Castile. The chronicle mentions a nobleman named Pedro Nieves, who was part of the king's court.

During the Spanish colonization of the Americas, the name Nieves was carried to the New World by Spanish settlers and conquistadors. One of the earliest documented instances of the name in the Americas is Juan de Nieves, a Spanish soldier who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 16th century.

The name Nieves has also been associated with various place names in Spain and Latin America. For example, there is a town called Nieves in the Spanish province of Segovia, and a city named Nuestra Señora de las Nieves (Our Lady of the Snows) in the Dominican Republic.

Notable individuals with the surname Nieves throughout history include:

1. Gaspar Núñez de Nieves (c. 1575-1659), a Spanish painter and engraver known for his religious artworks.
2. Juan Nieves (1917-2002), a Puerto Rican baseball player who played in the Negro Leagues and the Minor Leagues.
3. María Teresa Nieves (1929-2004), a Cuban singer and actress known as the "Queen of the Mambo."
4. Fabian Nieves (born 1972), a Puerto Rican professional boxer who competed in the lightweight and super lightweight divisions.
5. Rafael Nieves (born 1978), a Puerto Rican professional basketball player who played in several NBA teams, including the Milwaukee Bucks and the New Jersey Nets.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nieves

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

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

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

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