2010
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Orbegozo
From a Basque valley, referring to an area between hills or mountains.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 110 Americans carry the last name Orbegozo. That puts it at #156,540 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,115,949 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Orbegozo 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
110
1 in 3,115,949
Census rank
#156,540
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
96
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 96 bearers of the surname Orbegozo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156540th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Orbegozo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.4%. The next largest groups are White (14.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Orbegozo
The surname Orbegozo is of Basque origin, hailing from the Basque Country region straddling the border between Spain and France. It is believed to have emerged around the 12th or 13th century, during the height of the Christian reconquista against the Moors in the Iberian Peninsula.
Orbegozo is thought to derive from the Basque words "orbe," meaning "circle" or "orbit," and "gozo," meaning "sweet" or "pleasant." This could suggest that the name originally referred to a person from a pleasant, circular, or orbiting location. Alternatively, it may have been a descriptive surname referring to someone with a pleasant or circular demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Orbegozo can be found in the 14th-century Codex Calixtinus, a medieval manuscript that recorded the names of pilgrims who traveled to Santiago de Compostela. This suggests that individuals bearing the name were among the many who undertook the famous Camino de Santiago pilgrimage during that era.
In the 16th century, Juan de Orbegozo y Arteaga (c. 1520 - 1593) was a prominent Spanish nobleman and military leader who served as Governor of the Duchy of Milan and fought in the Italian Wars against the French. His exploits were documented in contemporary chronicles and histories.
During the 17th century, María de Orbegozo y Arízaga (1630 - 1706) was a notable figure in the Basque Country, known for her philanthropic efforts and contributions to the establishment of educational institutions and hospitals in the region.
Jumping ahead to the 19th century, Tomás de Orbegozo y Goicoechea (1801 - 1874) was a Basque politician and military figure who served as the first Lord Lieutenant of Álava, a province in the Basque Country. He played a pivotal role in the First Carlist War, a civil conflict over the succession to the Spanish throne.
In more recent times, Germán Orbegozo (1913 - 1998) was a renowned Basque sculptor and artist whose works can be found in various public spaces and museums throughout Spain and beyond. His sculptures often drew inspiration from Basque cultural themes and traditions.
Throughout its history, the surname Orbegozo has maintained a strong connection to its Basque roots, with many notable individuals bearing the name hailing from or contributing to the cultural, political, and artistic life of the Basque Country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Orbegozo
Among Census respondents with the surname Orbegozo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.4%. The next largest groups are White (14.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Orbegozo 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 Orbegozo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino85.4% · 82
- White14.6% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Orbegozo
Orbegozo appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,540
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 96
-21 bearers (-17.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 14,432 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,540 | 96 | 0.03 | -21 bearers (-17.9%) | Down 14,432 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 Orbegozo 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 | #142,108 | #156,540 | -10.2% |
| Count | 117 | 96 | -17.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -19.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Orbegozo bearers went from 117 to 96 (-17.9% change). The surname moved down 14,432 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #156,540.
FAQ
Orbegozo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Orbegozo?
Name Census estimates that about 110 living Americans carry the surname Orbegozo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,115,949 residents.
How common is Orbegozo?
Orbegozo ranks #156,540 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 96 people with the surname Orbegozo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (110), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Orbegozo.
Has Orbegozo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Orbegozo went from 117 recorded bearers to 96. That is a decrease of 21 (-17.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #156,540.
What does the Census say about the background of Orbegozo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Orbegozo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 85.4%. The next largest groups are White (14.6%). 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 Orbegozo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.4% (82 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Orbegozo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (85.4%), White (14.6%). 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 Orbegozo (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 Orbegozo mean?
From a Basque valley, referring to an area between hills or mountains. 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 Orbegozo (0.03 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 people have the last name Orbegozo?
You can see how many people have the last name Orbegozo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.