2000
#17,748
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,456
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.54
Rare Last name
Sanmartin
A toponymic surname indicating a person who lived near or originated from a place called San Martín.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,571 Americans carry the last name Sanmartin. That puts it at #13,078 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.75 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 133,316 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sanmartin 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 133,316
Census rank
#13,078
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,242 bearers of the surname Sanmartin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.75 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13078th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sanmartin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.9%. The next largest groups are White (9.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sanmartin
The surname SANMARTIN originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the combination of the Spanish words "san" meaning "saint" and "martin" which was a popular name during that time, referencing Saint Martin of Tours. This name likely originated in the northern regions of Spain, such as Galicia and Asturias.
The earliest recorded instances of the name SANMARTIN can be found in medieval Spanish documents and manuscripts from the 12th and 13th centuries. One notable mention is in the "Libro de Repartimiento" from the Kingdom of Valencia, which listed landowners and settlers after the Christian conquest of the region in the 13th century.
In the 14th century, a prominent figure named Pedro SANMARTIN was a military leader and nobleman who served under King Alfonso XI of Castile. He played a crucial role in the Reconquista, the effort to reclaim Spain from Moorish rule.
During the 15th century, the SANMARTIN name gained prominence in the region of Navarre, where several members of the family held important positions in the local government and church. Juan SANMARTIN, born in 1428, was a renowned scholar and theologian who served as the Bishop of León.
In the 16th century, the explorer and navigator Álvaro de SANMARTIN accompanied Ferdinand Magellan on his historic voyage around the world. He served as the chief pilot of the expedition and played a crucial role in navigating the treacherous Strait of Magellan.
Another notable figure with the SANMARTIN surname was Miguel SANMARTIN y Valiente, born in 1786, who was a Spanish military officer and politician. He served as the Minister of War during the reign of King Ferdinand VII and played a pivotal role in the Spanish Liberal Triennium, a constitutional period in the early 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sanmartin
Among Census respondents with the surname Sanmartin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.9%. The next largest groups are White (9.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Sanmartin 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 Sanmartin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino88.9% · 1,993
- White9.4% · 211
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- Black or African American0.6% · 13
- Two or more races0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sanmartin
Sanmartin 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
#14,160
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,121
+665 bearers (+45.7%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Up 3,588 places
2020
#13,078
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,242
+121 bearers (+5.7%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Up 1,082 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #17,748 | 1,456 | 0.54 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,160 | 2,121 | 0.72 | +665 bearers (+45.7%) | Up 3,588 places |
| 2020 | #13,078 | 2,242 | 0.75 | +121 bearers (+5.7%) | Up 1,082 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 Sanmartin 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 | #14,160 | #13,078 | 7.6% |
| Count | 2,121 | 2,242 | 5.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.75 | 4.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sanmartin bearers went from 2,121 to 2,242 (+5.7% change). The surname moved up 1,082 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,160 to #13,078.
FAQ
Sanmartin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sanmartin?
Name Census estimates that about 2,571 living Americans carry the surname Sanmartin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 133,316 residents.
How common is Sanmartin?
Sanmartin ranks #13,078 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 2,242 people with the surname Sanmartin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,571), 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 Sanmartin.
Has Sanmartin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sanmartin went from 2,121 recorded bearers to 2,242. That is an increase of 121 (+5.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,160 to #13,078.
What does the Census say about the background of Sanmartin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sanmartin, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 88.9%. The next largest groups are White (9.4%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%). 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 Sanmartin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.9% (1,993 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sanmartin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (88.9%), White (9.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.7%). 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 Sanmartin (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 Sanmartin mean?
A toponymic surname indicating a person who lived near or originated from a place called San Martín. 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 Sanmartin (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 Sanmartin?
Want to know how many people have the last name Sanmartin? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.