2000
#38,464
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 541
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.20
Rare Last name
Perezgarcia
A Spanish surname formed by compounding the surnames Perez and Garcia.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,577 Americans carry the last name Perezgarcia. That puts it at #9,883 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 95,822 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Perezgarcia 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
3.6K
1 in 95,822
Census rank
#9,883
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,119 bearers of the surname Perezgarcia in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9883rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Perezgarcia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 97.9%. The next largest groups are White (1.6%) and Black (0.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Perezgarcia
The surname PEREZGARCIA originates from Spain, tracing its roots back to the medieval era. It is a compound surname, formed by the combination of the patronymic "Perez" and the surname "Garcia." The first element, "Perez," derives from the ancient Spanish personal name "Pedro," which itself comes from the Latin "Petrus," meaning "rock" or "stone."
In the early centuries of Spanish history, it was common to adopt patronymic surnames, where the father's name was appended with the suffix "-ez" to denote filial descent. Thus, "Perez" would have initially signified "son of Pedro." The second element, "Garcia," is a widespread Spanish surname derived from the Visigothic personal name "Garsea," which, in turn, has its origins in the Germanic name "Gari," meaning "spear."
The earliest recorded instances of the surname PEREZGARCIA can be found in various medieval documents and records from Spain, such as the "Cartularios" (cartularies) and "Becerros" (registers) of monasteries and noble houses. One notable bearer was Rodrigo Perez Garcia, a 13th-century nobleman who served as the "Mayordomo Mayor" (Lord High Steward) to King Alfonso X of Castile and León.
During the Reconquista, the period of Christian conquest over the Moors in the Iberian Peninsula, several individuals with the surname PEREZGARCIA played significant roles in the military campaigns. Sancho Perez Garcia, born around 1170, was a celebrated knight and commander who participated in the conquest of Córdoba and Seville.
In the realm of literature, the surname PEREZGARCIA is associated with Juan Perez Garcia, a 16th-century Spanish poet and playwright known for his contributions to the early development of the Spanish theater. His works, such as "La Doleria del Sueño del Mundo" (The Dream World's Sorrow), were influential in their time.
As the Spanish empire expanded, the surname PEREZGARCIA spread to various regions of the Americas, where it can be found among the descendants of Spanish settlers and colonists. One notable bearer was Pedro Perez Garcia, a 17th-century explorer and navigator who accompanied the expeditions of Hernando de Soto and Álvar Núñez Cabeza de Vaca in their explorations of the present-day southern United States.
In more recent times, the surname PEREZGARCIA has been carried by individuals such as José Perez Garcia, a 19th-century Cuban poet and patriot who played a role in the struggle for Cuban independence, and Andrés Perez Garcia, a 20th-century Mexican artist renowned for his vibrant murals and paintings depicting the indigenous cultures of Mexico.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Perezgarcia
Among Census respondents with the surname Perezgarcia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 97.9%. The next largest groups are White (1.6%) and Black (0.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Perezgarcia 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 Perezgarcia surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino97.9% · 3,055
- White1.6% · 51
- Black or African American0.2% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 4
- Two or more races0.1% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Perezgarcia
Perezgarcia 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
#17,927
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,559
+1,018 bearers (+188.2%)
Per 100,000 0.53
Rank movement Up 20,537 places
2020
#9,883
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,119
+1,560 bearers (+100.1%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Up 8,044 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #38,464 | 541 | 0.20 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #17,927 | 1,559 | 0.53 | +1,018 bearers (+188.2%) | Up 20,537 places |
| 2020 | #9,883 | 3,119 | 1.04 | +1,560 bearers (+100.1%) | Up 8,044 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 Perezgarcia 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 | #17,927 | #9,883 | 44.9% |
| Count | 1,559 | 3,119 | 100.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.53 | 1.04 | 96.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Perezgarcia bearers went from 1,559 to 3,119 (+100.1% change). The surname moved up 8,044 positions in the national ranking, going from #17,927 to #9,883.
FAQ
Perezgarcia surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Perezgarcia?
Name Census estimates that about 3,577 living Americans carry the surname Perezgarcia. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 95,822 residents.
How common is Perezgarcia?
Perezgarcia ranks #9,883 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.04 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 3,119 people with the surname Perezgarcia. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,577), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.04 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 Perezgarcia.
Has Perezgarcia become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Perezgarcia went from 1,559 recorded bearers to 3,119. That is an increase of 1,560 (+100.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #17,927 to #9,883.
What does the Census say about the background of Perezgarcia?
Among Census respondents with the surname Perezgarcia, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 97.9%. The next largest groups are White (1.6%) and Black (0.2%). 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 Perezgarcia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.9% (3,055 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Perezgarcia appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (97.9%), White (1.6%), Black (0.2%). 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 Perezgarcia (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 Perezgarcia mean?
A Spanish surname formed by compounding the surnames Perez and Garcia. 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 Perezgarcia (1.04 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 common is the surname Perezgarcia?
Want to know how common the surname Perezgarcia is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.