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

Ovando, 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 Ovando surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ovando in America

Ovando is the 17331st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ovando surname appeared 1,631 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 Ovando.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ovando 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 Ovando

The surname Ovando is of Spanish origin, derived from the medieval Spanish toponym Ovando, which refers to a village located in the province of Palencia, Castile and León region of northern Spain. The name is believed to have originated in the 12th or 13th century during the Reconquista period, when the Christian kingdoms of the Iberian Peninsula were gradually reclaiming territories from the Moors.

Historical records indicate that the name Ovando first appeared in the Becerro de las Behetrías, a census-like document commissioned by King Pedro I of Castile in the 14th century, listing the names of noble families and their properties in the region of Palencia. The earliest known bearer of the surname Ovando was Fernán García de Ovando, a knight who fought alongside King Alfonso XI of Castile in the Battle of Rio Salado against the Moors in 1340.

One of the most notable figures in history bearing the surname Ovando was Nicolás de Ovando y Cáceres (c. 1460 – 1511), a Spanish military commander and colonial administrator who served as the third Governor of the Indies from 1501 to 1509. He established the first Spanish settlement on the Caribbean island of Hispaniola (present-day Haiti and Dominican Republic) and played a significant role in the colonization of the West Indies.

Another prominent individual with the surname Ovando was Juan de Ovando y Godínez (1515 – 1575), a Spanish Roman Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Arequipa in Peru from 1573 until his death. He was known for his efforts in promoting education and evangelization among the indigenous populations of the region.

In the realm of literature, one of the earliest references to the surname Ovando can be found in the works of the Spanish poet and playwright Lope de Vega (1562 – 1635), who mentions an individual named Ovando in his play "El villano en su rincón" (The Peasant in His Corner).

Other notable individuals with the surname Ovando include Pedro de Ovando (c. 1460 – 1515), a Spanish conquistador who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas and later served as the first governor of the island of Jamaica, and Alonso de Ovando (fl. 16th century), a Spanish conquistador and explorer who participated in the conquest of Guatemala and the exploration of the Pacific coast of Central America.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ovando

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!