2000
#6,252
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,032
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.87
Rare Last name
Orona
A Basque habitational surname indicating a person who lived near an oil mill or olive press.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,742 Americans carry the last name Orona. That puts it at #5,686 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 50,839 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Orona 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
6.7K
1 in 50,839
Census rank
#5,686
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,879 bearers of the surname Orona in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5686th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Orona, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.6%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Two or More Races (0.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Orona
The surname Orona is of Basque origin, originating in the Basque Country region spanning parts of northern Spain and southwestern France. The name is believed to have derived from the Basque word "orn," meaning "oven" or "furnace," potentially indicating an occupation or location associated with baking or metallurgy.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Orona surname can be found in the Cartulario de San Millán de la Cogolla, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 11th century. This cartulary, which contains records of land transactions and legal documents, includes references to individuals with the surname Orona in the region of La Rioja, Spain.
During the Middle Ages, the Orona family held significant influence and land holdings in the Basque provinces of Álava and Vizcaya. A notable figure from this period was Juan Pérez de Orona, a nobleman and military leader who fought alongside King Alfonso XI of Castile in the 14th century.
The Orona surname also has ties to notable figures in Spanish literature and arts. Miguel de Orona, born in Vitoria in 1564, was a celebrated poet and playwright during the Spanish Golden Age. His works, such as "La Conquista de las Malucas" and "El Marqués de las Navas," explored themes of honor, love, and conquest.
In the 18th century, Francisco Javier de Orona y Echeverría, born in 1721 in Durango, Vizcaya, was a renowned architect and engineer. He designed several notable buildings in Madrid, including the Royal Palace of Aranjuez and the Church of San Marcos.
Another prominent individual bearing the Orona surname was María Josefa Orona y Gaytán de Ayala, a Spanish novelist and playwright from the 19th century. Born in Cádiz in 1816, she was known for her works that depicted the struggles and societal roles of women during her time.
The Orona surname can also be found in various parts of Latin America, likely due to Spanish colonization and migration. In Mexico, for instance, the town of Orona in the state of Chihuahua bears the name, suggesting the presence of early settlers with this surname in the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Orona
Among Census respondents with the surname Orona, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.6%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Two or More Races (0.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Orona 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 Orona surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino88.6% · 5,210
- White9.1% · 536
- Two or more races0.7% · 40
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 36
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 36
- Black or African American0.4% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Orona
Orona 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
#5,649
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,145
+1,113 bearers (+22.1%)
Per 100,000 2.08
Rank movement Up 603 places
2020
#5,686
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,879
-266 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 1.97
Rank movement Down 37 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,252 | 5,032 | 1.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,649 | 6,145 | 2.08 | +1,113 bearers (+22.1%) | Up 603 places |
| 2020 | #5,686 | 5,879 | 1.97 | -266 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 37 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 Orona 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 | #5,649 | #5,686 | -0.7% |
| Count | 6,145 | 5,879 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.08 | 1.97 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Orona bearers went from 6,145 to 5,879 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 37 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,649 to #5,686.
FAQ
Orona surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Orona?
Name Census estimates that about 6,742 living Americans carry the surname Orona. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 50,839 residents.
How common is Orona?
Orona ranks #5,686 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.97 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 5,879 people with the surname Orona. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,742), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.97 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 Orona.
Has Orona become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Orona went from 6,145 recorded bearers to 5,879. That is a decrease of 266 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,649 to #5,686.
What does the Census say about the background of Orona?
Among Census respondents with the surname Orona, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.6%. The next largest groups are White (9.1%) and Two or More Races (0.7%). 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 Orona in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.6% (5,210 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Orona appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (88.6%), White (9.1%), Two or More Races (0.7%). 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 Orona (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 Orona mean?
A Basque habitational surname indicating a person who lived near an oil mill or olive press. 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 Orona (1.97 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 Orona?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Orona at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.