2000
#14,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,926
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.71
Rare Last name
Puig
A Catalan surname derived from the word "puig," meaning "hill" or "mountain," likely referring to someone who lived near a hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,561 Americans carry the last name Puig. That puts it at #13,131 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 133,836 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Puig 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 133,836
Census rank
#13,131
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,233 bearers of the surname Puig in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13131st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Puig, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.2%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Puig
The surname Puig is of Catalan origin, originating from the Catalonia region of northeastern Spain. It is derived from the Catalan word 'puig', which means 'hill' or 'mount'. The name likely emerged in the medieval era, referring to someone who lived near or on a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Puig can be found in the 13th century. In 1236, a document from the town of Castelló d'Empúries mentions a man named Guillem Puig. This suggests that the name was already in use by this time in the region of present-day Catalonia.
The surname Puig is also found in several historical records from the Kingdom of Aragon, which once encompassed parts of modern-day Spain and France. In the 14th century, a man named Pere Puig served as a scribe in the court of King Peter IV of Aragon.
During the 15th century, the Puig family gained prominence in the city of Valencia. One notable figure was Joan Puig, a wealthy merchant and banker who lived from around 1440 to 1510. He played a significant role in the economic and political affairs of Valencia during his lifetime.
In the 16th century, the Puig surname appeared in various parts of the Spanish empire, including the Americas. One example is Jerónimo Puig, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru in the 1530s under the command of Francisco Pizarro.
Another prominent individual with the surname Puig was Manuel Puig, an Argentine author and playwright born in 1932 and died in 1990. He is best known for his novels "The Buenos Aires Affair" and "The Kiss of the Spider Woman", which explored themes of gender, sexuality, and societal norms.
Jaume Puig i Cadafalch, born in 1867 and died in 1956, was a renowned Catalan architect, politician, and historian. He designed several notable buildings in Barcelona, including the Casa Amatller and the Casa Terrades.
In the world of sports, Rafael Puig was a Spanish tennis player born in 1919 and died in 1994. He won several tournaments in the 1940s and 1950s and represented Spain in the Davis Cup.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Puig
Among Census respondents with the surname Puig, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.2%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Puig 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 Puig surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino81.2% · 1,814
- White15.9% · 355
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 27
- Black or African American1.0% · 22
- Two or more races0.6% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Puig
Puig 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
#13,764
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,198
+272 bearers (+14.1%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Up 509 places
2020
#13,131
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,233
+35 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Up 633 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,273 | 1,926 | 0.71 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,764 | 2,198 | 0.75 | +272 bearers (+14.1%) | Up 509 places |
| 2020 | #13,131 | 2,233 | 0.75 | +35 bearers (+1.6%) | Up 633 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 Puig 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 | #13,764 | #13,131 | 4.6% |
| Count | 2,198 | 2,233 | 1.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.75 | -0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Puig bearers went from 2,198 to 2,233 (+1.6% change). The surname moved up 633 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,764 to #13,131.
FAQ
Puig surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Puig?
Name Census estimates that about 2,561 living Americans carry the surname Puig. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 133,836 residents.
How common is Puig?
Puig ranks #13,131 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 2,233 people with the surname Puig. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,561), 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 Puig.
Has Puig become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Puig went from 2,198 recorded bearers to 2,233. That is an increase of 35 (+1.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,764 to #13,131.
What does the Census say about the background of Puig?
Among Census respondents with the surname Puig, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.2%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%). 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 Puig in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.2% (1,814 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Puig appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (81.2%), White (15.9%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.2%). 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 Puig (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 Puig mean?
A Catalan surname derived from the word "puig," meaning "hill" or "mountain," likely referring to someone who lived near a hill. 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 Puig (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 common is the surname Puig?
Want to know how many people have the surname Puig? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.