Olmos last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Olmos

Derived from the Spanish word "olmo," meaning elm tree, likely referring to someone who lived near elm trees.

Olmos, 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 Olmos surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Olmos in America

Olmos is the 3596th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Olmos surname appeared 9,895 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Olmos.

We can also compare 2010 data for Olmos 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 3596 4644 -25.44%
Count 9,895 6,985 34.48%
Proportion per 100k 3.35 2.59 25.59%

The history of the last name Olmos

The surname Olmos originated from Spain. It dates back to the medieval era, around the 11th to 13th centuries. The name is derived from the Spanish word "olmo," which means elm tree. It was likely an occupational surname given to a person who lived near or worked with elm trees.

Olmos is a toponymic surname, meaning it was derived from a place name. Some of the earliest records show the name was associated with villages and towns in various regions of Spain, such as Olmos de Esgueva in Valladolid, Olmos de Ojeda in Palencia, and Olmos Albos in Ávila.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Olmos surname can be found in the medieval manuscript "Becerro de las Behetrías de Castilla," which dates back to the 14th century. This document listed various noble families and their properties in the region of Castile.

In the 15th century, Juan de Olmos (c. 1425-1490) was a notable Spanish translator and historian who worked under the patronage of Queen Isabella I of Castile. He is known for his translations of Latin texts into Spanish.

Another notable figure was Francisco de Olmos (c. 1492-1571), a Spanish Franciscan friar and linguist who studied and documented the Nahuatl language spoken by the Aztecs in Mexico.

In the 17th century, Pedro de Olmos (c. 1610-1678) was a Spanish painter and engraver who worked in the Baroque style. He is known for his religious paintings and engravings depicting scenes from the life of Christ.

Moving to the 18th century, José Olmos y Cerri (1741-1808) was a Spanish naval officer and cartographer. He is credited with creating some of the earliest maps and charts of the Pacific Northwest coast of North America.

In the 19th century, Andrés Olmos (1815-1886) was a Spanish botanist and naturalist who studied and cataloged the flora and fauna of the Balearic Islands.

These examples showcase the diverse backgrounds and contributions of individuals with the Olmos surname throughout history, spanning various fields such as literature, art, exploration, and science.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Olmos

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

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 Olmos was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 4.31% 426
Non-Hispanic Black Only 0.10% 10
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.84% 83
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.20% 20
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.50% 49
Hispanic Origin 94.06% 9,307

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 Olmos has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 4.31% 4.87% -12.20%
Black 0.10% 0.16% -46.15%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.84% 1.15% -31.16%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.20% 0.17% 16.22%
Two or More Races 0.50% 0.72% -36.07%
Hispanic 94.06% 92.94% 1.20%

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

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

Reference this page

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"Olmos last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/olmos-surname-popularity/.

"Olmos last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/olmos-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Olmos last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/olmos-surname-popularity/.

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