2000
#11,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,476
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.92
Rare Last name
Ortego
A Basque surname derived from the word "ortua," meaning "orchard" or "vegetable garden."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,596 Americans carry the last name Ortego. That puts it at #12,967 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,032 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ortego 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
2.6K
1 in 132,032
Census rank
#12,967
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,264 bearers of the surname Ortego in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12967th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ortego, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (21.2%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ortego
The surname Ortego originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Spanish word "huerta," meaning "garden" or "orchard." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near or worked in a garden or orchard.
Historical records show that the name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura in southern Spain. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Pedro Ortego, a landowner from Seville who was mentioned in a document from the year 1325.
In the 15th century, the name appeared in the records of the Spanish Inquisition, where several individuals with the surname Ortego were listed as conversos, or Jews who had converted to Christianity. This indicates that the name may have been adopted by some Sephardic Jewish families during that time.
As Spanish explorers and settlers ventured to the Americas in the 16th and 17th centuries, the name Ortego was carried across the Atlantic. One notable figure was Juan Ortego, a conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in 1519.
Over the centuries, variations of the spelling emerged, including Ortiga, Hortega, and Hurtado. The name was also sometimes combined with other surnames, such as Ortego y Gasca or Ortego de la Vega.
Several individuals with the surname Ortego have achieved prominence throughout history. These include:
1. Pedro Ortego de Solórzano (1548-1628), a Spanish jurist and writer who authored works on legal theory and philosophy.
2. María Ortego (1768-1837), a Spanish painter and one of the first women to be admitted to the Royal Academy of Fine Arts of San Fernando in Madrid.
3. José Ortego y Gasset (1883-1955), a Spanish philosopher and essayist who was a leading figure in the Generation of '98 movement.
4. Emilio Ortego Costales (1925-2003), a Spanish lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Congress of Deputies.
5. Mariano Ortego Fernández (born 1950), a Spanish poet and writer who has published several collections of poetry and literary criticism.
While the name Ortego is not as common globally as some other Spanish surnames, it has a rich history that traces back to the Middle Ages and reflects the diverse cultural influences that have shaped the Spanish language and people over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ortego
Among Census respondents with the surname Ortego, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (21.2%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Ortego 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 Ortego surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.6% · 1,690
- Hispanic or Latino21.2% · 481
- Two or more races2.1% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 10
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ortego
Ortego 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
#11,697
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,679
+203 bearers (+8.2%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Down 69 places
2020
#12,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,264
-415 bearers (-15.5%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 1,270 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,628 | 2,476 | 0.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,697 | 2,679 | 0.91 | +203 bearers (+8.2%) | Down 69 places |
| 2020 | #12,967 | 2,264 | 0.76 | -415 bearers (-15.5%) | Down 1,270 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 Ortego 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 | #11,697 | #12,967 | -10.9% |
| Count | 2,679 | 2,264 | -15.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.91 | 0.76 | -16.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ortego bearers went from 2,679 to 2,264 (-15.5% change). The surname moved down 1,270 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,697 to #12,967.
FAQ
Ortego surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ortego?
Name Census estimates that about 2,596 living Americans carry the surname Ortego. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,032 residents.
How common is Ortego?
Ortego ranks #12,967 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,264 people with the surname Ortego. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,596), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Ortego.
Has Ortego become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ortego went from 2,679 recorded bearers to 2,264. That is a decrease of 415 (-15.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,697 to #12,967.
What does the Census say about the background of Ortego?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ortego, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (21.2%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Ortego in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.6% (1,690 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ortego appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.6%), Hispanic (21.2%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Ortego (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 Ortego mean?
A Basque surname derived from the word "ortua," meaning "orchard" or "vegetable garden." 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 Ortego (0.76 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 Ortego?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.