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

Ortuño, 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 Ortuño surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ortuño in America

Ortuño is the 14495th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ortuño surname appeared 2,058 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Ortuño.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ortuño 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.

The history of the last name Ortuño

The surname Ortuno originated in Spain, with its earliest known records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "huerto," meaning garden or orchard, suggesting that the name's bearers may have been farmers or landowners associated with cultivated lands.

One of the earliest known references to the name Ortuno can be found in the medieval Spanish epic poem "El Cantar de Mio Cid," which dates back to the late 12th or early 13th century. In this literary work, there is a character named Ortuno who is mentioned as a servant or vassal of the legendary Spanish hero El Cid Campeador.

During the Middle Ages, the name Ortuno appeared in various historical documents and records, such as land deeds, tax rolls, and court proceedings. For instance, a certain Fernando Ortuno was mentioned in a land grant document from the Kingdom of Aragon in the year 1267.

In the 14th century, there are records of a nobleman named Rodrigo Ortuno who served as a knight in the court of King Alfonso XI of Castile. He was known for his participation in the Battle of Río Salado against the Moorish forces in 1340.

Another notable bearer of the Ortuno surname was Juan Ortuno, a 15th-century Spanish explorer and navigator. He accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493 and is believed to have been one of the first Europeans to set foot on the island of Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and Dominican Republic).

During the Renaissance period, the Ortuno family produced several prominent figures in the arts and literature. One such individual was Pedro Ortuno de Velasco (1510-1584), a renowned Spanish poet and playwright who authored several works in the traditional forms of the time, including sonnets and comedies.

In the 17th century, a branch of the Ortuno family settled in the Spanish colonies of the Americas, particularly in Mexico and Peru. One notable descendant was Ignacio Ortuno y Córdoba (1632-1698), a Spanish Catholic priest who served as the Bishop of Michoacán in Mexico and is remembered for his efforts in promoting education and social welfare among the indigenous populations.

Throughout the centuries, the Ortuno surname has undergone various spelling variations, including Ortunio, Ortunyo, and Hortuno, reflecting regional linguistic differences and historical changes in orthography.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ortuño

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

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 Ortuño was:

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

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

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

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