2000
#55,609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 345
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Palenzuela
Spanish surname indicating someone from Palenzuela, a town in Castile and León, Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 561 Americans carry the last name Palenzuela. That puts it at #46,865 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.16 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 610,970 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Palenzuela 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
561
1 in 610,970
Census rank
#46,865
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
489
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 489 bearers of the surname Palenzuela in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.16 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 46865th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Palenzuela, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.8%. The next largest groups are White (8.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Palenzuela
The surname Palenzuela is of Spanish origin, deriving from the medieval town of Palenzuela in the province of Palencia, located in the autonomous community of Castile and León. The name can be traced back to the 11th century, during the height of the Reconquista, the period of Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors.
Palenzuela was a strategically important town during this era, situated along the Camino de Santiago, the famous pilgrimage route to the shrine of St. James the Great in the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia. As such, the name Palenzuela appears in various historical records and manuscripts related to the Reconquista and the Camino de Santiago.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Palenzuela can be found in the Libro Becerro, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 13th century, which documented the properties and privileges of various religious institutions and noble families in the region. The name is also mentioned in the Codex Calixtinus, a 12th-century manuscript describing the Camino de Santiago and its history.
Over the centuries, the surname Palenzuela has been associated with several notable individuals, including:
1. Pedro de Palenzuela (c. 1210-1280), a Spanish Franciscan friar and renowned theologian who served as the Bishop of Ciudad Rodrigo and played a crucial role in the Council of Lyon in 1274.
2. Alonso de Palenzuela (c. 1460-1520), a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of the Canary Islands and later accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493.
3. Beatriz de Palenzuela (c. 1520-1590), a Spanish noblewoman and patron of the arts, known for her support of renowned artists such as El Greco and her role in the cultural renaissance of Toledo during the 16th century.
4. Diego de Palenzuela (c. 1580-1650), a Spanish architect and master builder who designed several notable churches and buildings in Seville, including the Church of San Isidoro del Campo and the Hospital de la Caridad.
5. Juana de Palenzuela (c. 1625-1705), a Spanish nun and mystic who founded the Convent of the Incarnation in Ávila and was renowned for her spiritual writings and teachings.
The name Palenzuela has also been associated with various place names throughout Spain, such as Palenzuela de las Monjas and Palenzuela de Yepes, reflecting the historic presence and influence of families bearing this surname in different regions of the country.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Palenzuela
Among Census respondents with the surname Palenzuela, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.8%. The next largest groups are White (8.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Palenzuela 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 Palenzuela surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino82.8% · 405
- White8.8% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.9% · 29
- Black or African American1.8% · 9
- Two or more races0.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Palenzuela
Palenzuela 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
#45,026
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 476
+131 bearers (+38.0%)
Per 100,000 0.16
Rank movement Up 10,583 places
2020
#46,865
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 489
+13 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.16
Rank movement Down 1,839 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #55,609 | 345 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #45,026 | 476 | 0.16 | +131 bearers (+38.0%) | Up 10,583 places |
| 2020 | #46,865 | 489 | 0.16 | +13 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 1,839 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 Palenzuela 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 | #45,026 | #46,865 | -4.1% |
| Count | 476 | 489 | 2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.16 | 0.16 | 2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Palenzuela bearers went from 476 to 489 (+2.7% change). The surname moved down 1,839 positions in the national ranking, going from #45,026 to #46,865.
FAQ
Palenzuela surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Palenzuela?
Name Census estimates that about 561 living Americans carry the surname Palenzuela. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 610,970 residents.
How common is Palenzuela?
Palenzuela ranks #46,865 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.16 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 489 people with the surname Palenzuela. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (561), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.16 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.16 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Palenzuela.
Has Palenzuela become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Palenzuela went from 476 recorded bearers to 489. That is an increase of 13 (+2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #45,026 to #46,865.
What does the Census say about the background of Palenzuela?
Among Census respondents with the surname Palenzuela, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 82.8%. The next largest groups are White (8.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%). 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 Palenzuela in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.8% (405 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Palenzuela appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (82.8%), White (8.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (5.9%). 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 Palenzuela (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 Palenzuela mean?
Spanish surname indicating someone from Palenzuela, a town in Castile and León, 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 Palenzuela (0.16 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 are called Palenzuela?
See how many people have the surname Palenzuela on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.