2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Obezo
A Spanish surname derived from the word 'obeso', meaning overweight or obese.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Obezo. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Obezo 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Obezo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Obezo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Black (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Obezo
The surname OBEZO has its origins in the Basque region of northern Spain and southern France. It is likely derived from the Basque words "obe" meaning "good" and "zo" meaning "one who is," potentially translating to "a good person" or "a well-respected individual." The name has been documented in various Basque records dating back to the 15th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the OBEZO surname can be found in a medieval manuscript from the town of Vitoria-Gasteiz in the province of Álava, Spain. The document, dated 1492, mentions a landowner named Juan de OBEZO who was involved in a property dispute. This suggests that the OBEZO family had established themselves as landowners in the region during that period.
In the 16th century, the OBEZO name appears in several church records from the Basque Country, indicating that the family had a presence in various towns and villages throughout the region. One notable entry is the baptismal record of María OBEZO, born in the village of Zumaia in 1572.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the OBEZO name continued to be prevalent in Basque records, with some individuals achieving notable positions within the local communities. For instance, Pedro OBEZO served as the mayor of the town of Azpeitia in the late 1600s, while Ignacio OBEZO was a respected merchant and landowner in the city of San Sebastián in the mid-1700s.
As the OBEZO family dispersed throughout Spain and beyond, the surname found its way into other regions and countries. One notable figure was Javier OBEZO, a Spanish military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars in the early 19th century. He was born in Vitoria-Gasteiz in 1785 and served with distinction in several campaigns before his death in 1832.
Another prominent individual bearing the OBEZO surname was María Dolores OBEZO, a renowned Basque writer and poet who lived in the late 19th century. She was born in Bilbao in 1854 and published several collections of poetry that celebrated Basque culture and traditions. Her works were widely acclaimed during her lifetime, and she is considered an important figure in the literary history of the Basque Country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Obezo
Among Census respondents with the surname Obezo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Black (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Obezo 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 Obezo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino89.3% · 108
- White9.1% · 11
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Obezo
Obezo 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+18 bearers (+17.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,016 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+1 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,081 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +18 bearers (+17.6%) | Up 9,016 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 2,081 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 Obezo 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 | #139,228 | #141,309 | -1.5% |
| Count | 120 | 121 | 0.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Obezo bearers went from 120 to 121 (+0.8% change). The surname moved down 2,081 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #141,309.
FAQ
Obezo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Obezo?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Obezo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Obezo?
Obezo ranks #141,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 121 people with the surname Obezo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Obezo.
Has Obezo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Obezo went from 120 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 1 (+0.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Obezo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Obezo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Black (0.8%). 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 Obezo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Obezo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (89.3%), White (9.1%), Black (0.8%). 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 Obezo (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 Obezo mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the word 'obeso', meaning overweight or obese. 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 Obezo (0.04 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 are called Obezo?
Want to know how common the surname Obezo is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.