2000
#16,444
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,611
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.60
Rare Last name
Oyola
A Spanish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the place name Ollora in Navarre, Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,557 Americans carry the last name Oyola. That puts it at #13,148 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 134,045 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Oyola 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 134,045
Census rank
#13,148
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,230 bearers of the surname Oyola in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13148th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Oyola, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (1.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Oyola
The surname "OYOLA" has its origins in Spain, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the late 15th century. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "oyuela," which means "small pit" or "small hole." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a small pit or depression in the land.
The earliest known record of the surname "OYOLA" can be found in the archives of the city of Seville, where a certain Juan de Oyola is mentioned in a document dated 1492. This document suggests that the Oyola family was already well-established in the region at that time.
In the 16th century, the name began to appear in other parts of Spain, particularly in the regions of Andalusia and Extremadura. One notable figure from this period was Hernando de Oyola, a Spanish soldier who served under the famous conquistador Hernán Cortés during the conquest of Mexico in the 1520s.
As the Spanish Empire expanded across the Americas, the surname "OYOLA" spread to various colonies, including present-day Mexico, Peru, and Colombia. In the late 17th century, a man named Diego de Oyola y Cabrera was appointed as the Governor of Panama, serving from 1685 to 1692.
In the 18th century, the name appeared in various historical documents related to the Spanish colonial administration in the Americas. For example, José de Oyola was a high-ranking official in the Viceroyalty of Peru in the 1760s, while Andrés de Oyola served as the Mayor of Havana, Cuba, in the 1780s.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname "OYOLA" was the Peruvian general Agustín Gamarra Oyola (1785-1841), who played a significant role in the wars of independence and later served as the President of Peru on three separate occasions.
Another notable figure was the Mexican politician and lawyer José María Oyola (1828-1896), who served as the Governor of the state of Jalisco and played a crucial role in drafting the Mexican Constitution of 1857.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Oyola
Among Census respondents with the surname Oyola, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (1.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Oyola 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 Oyola surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino91.4% · 2,038
- White6.3% · 141
- Black or African American1.3% · 29
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
- Two or more races0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Oyola
Oyola 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
#14,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,051
+440 bearers (+27.3%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 1,912 places
2020
#13,148
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,230
+179 bearers (+8.7%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Up 1,384 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,444 | 1,611 | 0.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,532 | 2,051 | 0.70 | +440 bearers (+27.3%) | Up 1,912 places |
| 2020 | #13,148 | 2,230 | 0.75 | +179 bearers (+8.7%) | Up 1,384 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 Oyola 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 | #14,532 | #13,148 | 9.5% |
| Count | 2,051 | 2,230 | 8.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.70 | 0.75 | 6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Oyola bearers went from 2,051 to 2,230 (+8.7% change). The surname moved up 1,384 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,532 to #13,148.
FAQ
Oyola surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Oyola?
Name Census estimates that about 2,557 living Americans carry the surname Oyola. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 134,045 residents.
How common is Oyola?
Oyola ranks #13,148 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.75 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 2,230 people with the surname Oyola. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,557), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.75 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.75 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 Oyola.
Has Oyola become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Oyola went from 2,051 recorded bearers to 2,230. That is an increase of 179 (+8.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,532 to #13,148.
What does the Census say about the background of Oyola?
Among Census respondents with the surname Oyola, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 91.4%. The next largest groups are White (6.3%) and Black (1.3%). 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 Oyola in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (2,038 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Oyola appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (91.4%), White (6.3%), Black (1.3%). 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 Oyola (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 Oyola mean?
A Spanish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the place name Ollora in Navarre, Spain. 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 Oyola (0.75 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 Oyola?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.