2000
#26,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 854
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.32
Rare Last name
Payano
A surname of Hispanic origin, possibly derived from the Spanish word "paya" meaning a straw mat or basket weaver.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,077 Americans carry the last name Payano. That puts it at #15,545 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 165,024 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Payano 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
2.1K
1 in 165,024
Census rank
#15,545
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,811 bearers of the surname Payano in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15545th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Payano, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.6%. The next largest groups are White (2.4%) and Black (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Payano
The surname PAYANO originated in the Dominican Republic during the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Spanish word "payano," which means "someone from the countryside or rural areas." The name was likely given to individuals who lived in the rural regions of the Dominican Republic during the Spanish colonial era.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the PAYANO surname can be found in the archives of the Cathedral of Santo Domingo, where it appears in various church records dating back to the late 1500s. This suggests that the name was well-established in the Dominican Republic by that time.
In the 18th century, the PAYANO surname was also found in historical documents from the nearby island of Puerto Rico, indicating that some individuals with this name had migrated or were descendants of those who had migrated from the Dominican Republic to Puerto Rico during the Spanish colonial period.
One notable bearer of the PAYANO surname was José Antonio Payano, a Dominican military officer who fought in the Battle of Sabana Real during the Dominican War of Independence against Spain in 1844. He was born in 1815 and played a significant role in the country's struggle for independence.
Another historical figure with the PAYANO surname was Manuel de Jesús Payano, a Dominican writer and journalist who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was born in 1868 and was known for his contributions to Dominican literature and journalism during that era.
In the 20th century, the PAYANO surname gained further recognition with individuals like Rafael Payano, a Dominican politician and diplomat who served as the Ambassador of the Dominican Republic to the United States from 1962 to 1966. He was born in 1900 and played an important role in strengthening diplomatic ties between the two countries.
Additionally, José Payano was a renowned Dominican artist and sculptor who was born in 1927. He is best known for his sculptures and public art installations that can be found throughout the Dominican Republic and other parts of the Caribbean.
Throughout its history, the PAYANO surname has remained closely associated with its Dominican roots, although it has also spread to other regions of the world through migration and diaspora communities.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Payano
Among Census respondents with the surname Payano, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.6%. The next largest groups are White (2.4%) and Black (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Payano 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 Payano surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.6% · 1,731
- White2.4% · 44
- Black or African American1.0% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 11
- Two or more races0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Payano
Payano 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
#21,119
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,243
+389 bearers (+45.6%)
Per 100,000 0.42
Rank movement Up 5,664 places
2020
#15,545
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,811
+568 bearers (+45.7%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Up 5,574 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #26,783 | 854 | 0.32 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #21,119 | 1,243 | 0.42 | +389 bearers (+45.6%) | Up 5,664 places |
| 2020 | #15,545 | 1,811 | 0.61 | +568 bearers (+45.7%) | Up 5,574 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 Payano 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 | #21,119 | #15,545 | 26.4% |
| Count | 1,243 | 1,811 | 45.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.42 | 0.61 | 44.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Payano bearers went from 1,243 to 1,811 (+45.7% change). The surname moved up 5,574 positions in the national ranking, going from #21,119 to #15,545.
FAQ
Payano surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Payano?
Name Census estimates that about 2,077 living Americans carry the surname Payano. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 165,024 residents.
How common is Payano?
Payano ranks #15,545 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 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 1,811 people with the surname Payano. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,077), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 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 Payano.
Has Payano become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Payano went from 1,243 recorded bearers to 1,811. That is an increase of 568 (+45.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #21,119 to #15,545.
What does the Census say about the background of Payano?
Among Census respondents with the surname Payano, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.6%. The next largest groups are White (2.4%) and Black (1.0%). 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 Payano in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.6% (1,731 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Payano appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.6%), White (2.4%), Black (1.0%). 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 Payano (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 Payano mean?
A surname of Hispanic origin, possibly derived from the Spanish word "paya" meaning a straw mat or basket weaver. 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 Payano (0.61 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 Payano?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.