2000
#11,123
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,617
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.97
Rare Last name
Ricardo
A Spanish and Portuguese patronymic surname meaning "son of Richard," derived from the Germanic elements "ric" (power) and "hard" (brave).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,064 Americans carry the last name Ricardo. That puts it at #8,871 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 84,339 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ricardo 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Ricardo with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 84,339
Census rank
#8,871
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,544 bearers of the surname Ricardo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8871st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ricardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.4%. The next largest groups are White (21.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ricardo
The surname Ricardo originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is a Latinized form of the Germanic name Richard, which means "brave power" or "powerful ruler". The name was likely brought to Spain by the Visigoths, a Germanic tribe that ruled parts of the Iberian Peninsula between the 5th and 8th centuries.
In its earliest recorded forms, the name appeared as Richart or Ricard in various regions of Spain, particularly in the northern areas such as Catalonia and Aragon. As the use of Latin spread throughout Europe, the name evolved into the Latinized form Ricardo, which became more common in written records and official documents.
One of the earliest known references to the surname Ricardo can be found in the Libro de la Montería, a 14th-century manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile. The manuscript mentions several individuals with the surname, indicating that it was already well-established in Spain by that time.
In the 15th century, the surname gained prominence with the birth of Bartolomé Ricardo (1445-1509), a Spanish theologian and philosopher who served as the rector of the University of Salamanca. His works on logic and metaphysics were widely influential during the Renaissance period.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Jerónimo Ricardo (1540-1624), a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of the Philippines and served as the governor of the Mariana Islands from 1596 to 1600.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Ricardo spread beyond Spain as a result of Spanish exploration and colonization efforts. It can be found in various historical records from the Spanish colonies in the Americas, particularly in Mexico, Peru, and the Philippines.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname in the Americas is that of Diego Ricardo, a Spanish conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés in the conquest of Mexico in the early 16th century. He later settled in the region and established a prominent family line.
In the 19th century, the surname gained international recognition with the birth of David Ricardo (1772-1823), a British political economist and influential thinker in the field of classical economics. Although of Jewish-Portuguese descent, his family had adopted the surname Ricardo while living in the Netherlands before settling in England.
Throughout history, the surname Ricardo has been associated with individuals from various walks of life, including scholars, soldiers, explorers, and statesmen. Its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in Spain, where it emerged as a Latinized form of a Germanic name, reflecting the cultural and linguistic influences that shaped the Iberian Peninsula over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ricardo
Among Census respondents with the surname Ricardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.4%. The next largest groups are White (21.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ricardo 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 Ricardo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino69.4% · 2,459
- White21.8% · 771
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.0% · 141
- Black or African American3.8% · 133
- Two or more races0.8% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ricardo
Ricardo 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
#9,433
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,448
+831 bearers (+31.8%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Up 1,690 places
2020
#8,871
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,544
+96 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Up 562 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,123 | 2,617 | 0.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,433 | 3,448 | 1.17 | +831 bearers (+31.8%) | Up 1,690 places |
| 2020 | #8,871 | 3,544 | 1.19 | +96 bearers (+2.8%) | Up 562 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 Ricardo 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 | #9,433 | #8,871 | 6.0% |
| Count | 3,448 | 3,544 | 2.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.17 | 1.19 | 1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ricardo bearers went from 3,448 to 3,544 (+2.8% change). The surname moved up 562 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,433 to #8,871.
FAQ
Ricardo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ricardo?
Name Census estimates that about 4,064 living Americans carry the surname Ricardo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 84,339 residents.
How common is Ricardo?
Ricardo ranks #8,871 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 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 3,544 people with the surname Ricardo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,064), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 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 Ricardo.
Has Ricardo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ricardo went from 3,448 recorded bearers to 3,544. That is an increase of 96 (+2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #9,433 to #8,871.
What does the Census say about the background of Ricardo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ricardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 69.4%. The next largest groups are White (21.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (4.0%). 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 Ricardo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.4% (2,459 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ricardo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (69.4%), White (21.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (4.0%). 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 Ricardo (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 Ricardo mean?
A Spanish and Portuguese patronymic surname meaning "son of Richard," derived from the Germanic elements "ric" (power) and "hard" (brave). 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 Ricardo (1.19 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 Ricardo?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.