2000
#4,953
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,513
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.41
Uncommon Last name
Rueda
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a wheel or water wheel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,486 Americans carry the last name Rueda. That puts it at #3,790 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,687 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rueda 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
10K
1 in 32,687
Census rank
#3,790
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.1K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,144 bearers of the surname Rueda in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3790th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rueda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rueda
The surname Rueda originates from Spain and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Spanish word "rueda," meaning "wheel." The name likely referred to someone who lived near a wheel or mill, or possibly a maker of wheels or carts.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rueda can be found in the Libro del Repartimiento, a medieval document from the 13th century that recorded the distribution of lands and properties in the region of Andalusia after the Christian conquest. In this document, several individuals with the surname Rueda are mentioned as receiving land grants in various towns and villages.
During the 15th century, the name Rueda appeared in several historical records and manuscripts from the Kingdom of Castile. For instance, Juan Rueda, a prominent merchant and landowner from the city of Toledo, was mentioned in several legal documents from the late 1400s.
In the 16th century, the surname Rueda gained further prominence with the birth of Lope de Rueda (c. 1510-1565), a renowned Spanish playwright, actor, and poet who is considered a pioneer of the Spanish Golden Age theater. He is credited with introducing the concept of the "comedia nueva" (new comedy) and is regarded as one of the most influential figures in the development of Spanish drama.
Another notable figure with the surname Rueda was Pedro Rueda (c. 1550-1611), a Spanish painter from the Renaissance era. He is best known for his religious paintings and worked extensively in the city of Seville.
In the 18th century, the name Rueda can be found associated with Tomás Rueda (1691-1762), a Spanish architect and engineer who designed several important buildings and infrastructure projects in Madrid and other parts of Spain during the reign of King Philip V.
Throughout the centuries, the surname Rueda has also been linked to various place names and locales in Spain, such as Rueda de la Sierra (a municipality in the province of Guadalajara), Rueda de Jalón (a village in the province of Zaragoza), and Rueda de la Península Ibérica (a geographical region known for its wine production).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rueda
Among Census respondents with the surname Rueda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Rueda 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 Rueda surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.4% · 8,449
- White4.8% · 442
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 180
- Black or African American0.4% · 37
- Two or more races0.3% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rueda
Rueda 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
#3,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,253
+2,740 bearers (+42.1%)
Per 100,000 3.14
Rank movement Up 1,124 places
2020
#3,790
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,144
-109 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 3.06
Rank movement Up 39 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,953 | 6,513 | 2.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,829 | 9,253 | 3.14 | +2,740 bearers (+42.1%) | Up 1,124 places |
| 2020 | #3,790 | 9,144 | 3.06 | -109 bearers (-1.2%) | Up 39 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 Rueda 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 | #3,829 | #3,790 | 1.0% |
| Count | 9,253 | 9,144 | -1.2% |
| Per 100K | 3.14 | 3.06 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rueda bearers went from 9,253 to 9,144 (-1.2% change). The surname moved up 39 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,829 to #3,790.
FAQ
Rueda surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rueda?
Name Census estimates that about 10,486 living Americans carry the surname Rueda. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,687 residents.
How common is Rueda?
Rueda ranks #3,790 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,144 people with the surname Rueda. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,486), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Rueda.
Has Rueda become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rueda went from 9,253 recorded bearers to 9,144. That is a decrease of 109 (-1.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,829 to #3,790.
What does the Census say about the background of Rueda?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rueda, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (4.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). 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 Rueda in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (8,449 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rueda appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.4%), White (4.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.0%). 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 Rueda (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 Rueda mean?
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a wheel or water wheel. 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 Rueda (3.06 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 have the last name Rueda?
If you just want to know how many Americans have the surname Rueda, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.