2000
#61,713
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 304
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.11
Very Rare Last name
Queiroz
A Portuguese surname derived from the names of two places, Queiros and Quireza.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 831 Americans carry the last name Queiroz. That puts it at #33,783 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 412,460 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Queiroz 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
831
1 in 412,460
Census rank
#33,783
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
725
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 725 bearers of the surname Queiroz in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 33783rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Queiroz, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.7%) and Black (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Queiroz
The surname Queiroz originates from Portugal, where it first emerged in the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Portuguese word "queiró," meaning "a place where oak trees grow," indicating that the name likely originated as a place name referring to an area with abundant oak trees. The earliest recorded appearance of the name can be found in medieval Portuguese documents from the 13th and 14th centuries.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Queiroz was Afonso Queiroz, a Portuguese nobleman who lived in the 14th century and was mentioned in royal charters from that time period. The name also appeared in various municipal records and land deeds from that era, indicating that it was well-established among noble and landowning families in Portugal.
During the Age of Discovery, when Portuguese explorers and settlers ventured to new lands, the surname Queiroz spread to other regions, including Brazil, where it became particularly prevalent. One notable figure with this surname was José Maria Eça de Queiroz, a renowned Portuguese novelist and playwright born in 1845, who is considered one of the greatest writers in the Portuguese language.
Another prominent individual bearing the Queiroz name was Rachel de Queiroz, a Brazilian writer and journalist born in 1910, who is regarded as one of the most influential figures in Brazilian literature and was the first woman to be elected to the Brazilian Academy of Letters in 1977.
In the 16th century, the Queiroz family established itself in the Azores archipelago, where the name can still be found today. One notable member of this family was João Baptista Queiroz, born in 1856, who was a prominent businessman and landowner in the Azores.
Moving forward in time, Manuel de Oliveira Queiroz, born in 1897, was a Brazilian industrialist and entrepreneur who founded one of the largest conglomerates in Latin America, the Queiroz Galvão Group, which operates in various sectors including construction, energy, and real estate.
Throughout its history, the surname Queiroz has been associated with numerous influential individuals from various fields, including literature, business, and politics, reflecting the widespread presence and significance of this name across the Portuguese-speaking world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Queiroz
Among Census respondents with the surname Queiroz, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.7%) and Black (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Queiroz 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 Queiroz surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White75.3% · 546
- Hispanic or Latino9.7% · 70
- Black or African American5.9% · 43
- Two or more races4.1% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.0% · 29
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Queiroz
Queiroz 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
#42,308
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 513
+209 bearers (+68.8%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Up 19,405 places
2020
#33,783
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 725
+212 bearers (+41.3%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Up 8,525 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #61,713 | 304 | 0.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #42,308 | 513 | 0.17 | +209 bearers (+68.8%) | Up 19,405 places |
| 2020 | #33,783 | 725 | 0.24 | +212 bearers (+41.3%) | Up 8,525 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 Queiroz 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 | #42,308 | #33,783 | 20.1% |
| Count | 513 | 725 | 41.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.17 | 0.24 | 42.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Queiroz bearers went from 513 to 725 (+41.3% change). The surname moved up 8,525 positions in the national ranking, going from #42,308 to #33,783.
FAQ
Queiroz surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Queiroz?
Name Census estimates that about 831 living Americans carry the surname Queiroz. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 412,460 residents.
How common is Queiroz?
Queiroz ranks #33,783 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.24 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 725 people with the surname Queiroz. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (831), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.24 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 Queiroz.
Has Queiroz become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Queiroz went from 513 recorded bearers to 725. That is an increase of 212 (+41.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #42,308 to #33,783.
What does the Census say about the background of Queiroz?
Among Census respondents with the surname Queiroz, the largest self-reported group is White at 75.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.7%) and Black (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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Queiroz in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.3% (546 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Queiroz appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (75.3%), Hispanic (9.7%), Black (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 Queiroz (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 Queiroz mean?
A Portuguese surname derived from the names of two places, Queiros and Quireza. 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 Queiroz (0.24 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 Queiroz?
Find out how common the surname Queiroz is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.