2000
#6,940
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,457
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.65
Rare Last name
Obregon
A Spanish habitational surname referring to a person from any of several places named Obregón, meaning "hill of hollows."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,955 Americans carry the last name Obregon. That puts it at #5,541 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 49,282 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Obregon 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
7.0K
1 in 49,282
Census rank
#5,541
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,065 bearers of the surname Obregon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5541st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Obregon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.4%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Obregon
The surname Obregon has its origins in Spain, where it first appeared in the 15th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "obregón," which means a pastry or bread roll. This suggests that the original bearers of this name may have been bakers or confectioners.
The name Obregon is thought to have originated in the region of Castile, particularly in the province of Burgos. One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the archives of the city of Burgos, dating back to the late 1400s.
During the Spanish colonization of the Americas, the Obregon name spread to various parts of the New World, particularly to Mexico and other Latin American countries. One notable bearer of this name was Alvaro Obregon, a Mexican revolutionary and military leader who played a pivotal role in the Mexican Revolution and later served as President of Mexico from 1920 to 1924.
Another notable figure with the Obregon surname was Pedro de Obregon, a Spanish conquistador and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in the early 16th century. He is credited with being one of the first Europeans to witness the Aztec capital of Tenochtitlan (present-day Mexico City).
In the field of literature, one of the earliest recorded uses of the Obregon name can be found in the novel "El ingenioso hidalgo Don Quijote de la Mancha" by Miguel de Cervantes, published in the early 17th century. One of the minor characters in the novel is referred to as "el Obregon."
Other notable individuals with the Obregon surname include José María Obregon, a 19th-century Mexican politician and diplomat, and Soledad Obregon, a Mexican actress and singer who gained popularity in the mid-20th century.
While the Obregon name has its roots in Spain, it has since become widespread in various Latin American countries, particularly Mexico, where it remains a fairly common surname to this day.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Obregon
Among Census respondents with the surname Obregon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.4%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Obregon 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 Obregon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino90.4% · 5,482
- White7.0% · 427
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 73
- Two or more races0.6% · 34
- Black or African American0.4% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 23
Timeline
Historical Census data for Obregon
Obregon 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
#5,630
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,172
+1,715 bearers (+38.5%)
Per 100,000 2.09
Rank movement Up 1,310 places
2020
#5,541
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,065
-107 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Up 89 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,940 | 4,457 | 1.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,630 | 6,172 | 2.09 | +1,715 bearers (+38.5%) | Up 1,310 places |
| 2020 | #5,541 | 6,065 | 2.03 | -107 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 89 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 Obregon 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 | #5,630 | #5,541 | 1.6% |
| Count | 6,172 | 6,065 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.09 | 2.03 | -2.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Obregon bearers went from 6,172 to 6,065 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 89 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,630 to #5,541.
FAQ
Obregon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Obregon?
Name Census estimates that about 6,955 living Americans carry the surname Obregon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 49,282 residents.
How common is Obregon?
Obregon ranks #5,541 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,065 people with the surname Obregon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,955), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Obregon.
Has Obregon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Obregon went from 6,172 recorded bearers to 6,065. That is a decrease of 107 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #5,630 to #5,541.
What does the Census say about the background of Obregon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Obregon, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.4%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%). 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 Obregon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (5,482 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Obregon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (90.4%), White (7.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%). 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 Obregon (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 Obregon mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to a person from any of several places named Obregón, meaning "hill of hollows." 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 Obregon (2.03 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 Americans have the surname Obregon?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.