2000
#3,730
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,729
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.24
Uncommon Last name
Santillan
Derived from a Spanish place name meaning "Saint Illan," referring to a town in Castile, Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 14,238 Americans carry the last name Santillan. That puts it at #2,823 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 24,073 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Santillan 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
14K
1 in 24,073
Census rank
#2,823
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
12K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 12,416 bearers of the surname Santillan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2823rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Santillan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.2%) and White (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Santillan
The surname Santillan has its origins in Spain, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from a place name, either from the town of Santillana located in the province of Cantabria in northern Spain, or from a smaller village or hamlet with a similar name.
The name itself may have originated from the Latin word "sanctus" meaning "holy" or "sacred", combined with the suffix "-ana" which denotes a place name. This suggests that Santillan could have referred to a holy or sacred place, potentially related to a church, monastery, or other religious site.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Santillan can be found in historical documents from the 13th and 14th centuries in regions such as Castile, Aragon, and Navarre. One notable example is Alonso de Santillan, a Spanish poet and writer who lived in the 15th century (circa 1404-1458).
Another prominent figure bearing the Santillan name was Diego de Santillan, a Spanish military commander and conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 16th century. He was born around 1495 and played a crucial role in the subjugation of the Aztec Empire.
In the late 15th century, the Santillan family was granted a coat of arms, indicating their noble status and importance during that era. The design featured a golden lion on a blue field, symbolizing valor and strength.
The name Santillan also appears in various historical records and manuscripts from the 16th and 17th centuries, particularly in regions of Spain with strong ties to the Catholic Church, such as Andalusia and Castile.
Rodrigo de Santillan, born in 1545, was a renowned Spanish playwright and poet who contributed significantly to the development of the Spanish Golden Age theater. Another notable figure was Juan de Santillan, a 16th-century Spanish navigator and explorer who accompanied Ferdinand Magellan on his famous circumnavigation of the globe.
While the surname Santillan has Spanish roots, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including Latin America and other regions with Spanish influence. Some notable individuals bearing this surname include Susana Santillán, an Argentine writer and journalist born in 1936, and José Santillán, a Mexican former professional footballer who played in the 1970s and 1980s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Santillan
Among Census respondents with the surname Santillan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.2%) and White (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Santillan 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 Santillan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.8% · 11,528
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.2% · 403
- White3.2% · 400
- Two or more races0.4% · 45
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 23
- Black or African American0.1% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Santillan
Santillan 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
#2,756
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,081
+4,352 bearers (+49.9%)
Per 100,000 4.43
Rank movement Up 974 places
2020
#2,823
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,416
-665 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 4.15
Rank movement Down 67 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,730 | 8,729 | 3.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,756 | 13,081 | 4.43 | +4,352 bearers (+49.9%) | Up 974 places |
| 2020 | #2,823 | 12,416 | 4.15 | -665 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 67 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 Santillan 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 | #2,756 | #2,823 | -2.4% |
| Count | 13,081 | 12,416 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 4.43 | 4.15 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Santillan bearers went from 13,081 to 12,416 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 67 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,756 to #2,823.
FAQ
Santillan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Santillan?
Name Census estimates that about 14,238 living Americans carry the surname Santillan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 24,073 residents.
How common is Santillan?
Santillan ranks #2,823 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 12,416 people with the surname Santillan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (14,238), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Santillan.
Has Santillan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Santillan went from 13,081 recorded bearers to 12,416. That is a decrease of 665 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,756 to #2,823.
What does the Census say about the background of Santillan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Santillan, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (3.2%) and White (3.2%). 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 Santillan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (11,528 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Santillan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.2%), White (3.2%). 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 Santillan (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 Santillan mean?
Derived from a Spanish place name meaning "Saint Illan," referring to a town in Castile, Spain. 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 Santillan (4.15 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 surname Santillan?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.