2000
#8,860
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,400
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.26
Rare Last name
Sedillo
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Sedillo in Spain.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,023 Americans carry the last name Sedillo. That puts it at #8,951 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 85,199 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sedillo 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
4.0K
1 in 85,199
Census rank
#8,951
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,508 bearers of the surname Sedillo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8951st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sedillo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sedillo
The surname Sedillo is of Spanish origin and can be traced back to medieval times in the Iberian Peninsula. It is believed to have derived from the Latin word "sedile," meaning a seat or bench. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person who made or sold seats or benches, or perhaps someone who lived near a specific seat or bench in a particular town or village.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Sedillo can be found in various Spanish documents and records from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is a mention of a certain Pedro Sedillo in a land grant document from the region of Castile in 1287. This suggests that the name was already established and in use during that time period.
As the Spanish Empire expanded across the Atlantic, the surname Sedillo was carried to the Americas by early Spanish settlers and conquistadors. Some of the first documented cases of the name in the New World can be found in colonial records from Mexico and the southwestern United States, particularly in areas that were part of the former Spanish viceroyalty of New Spain.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Sedillo was Juan Sedillo, a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the expedition of Juan de Oñate to establish the province of New Mexico in the late 16th century. Juan Sedillo is believed to have been born around 1560 in Spain and played a role in the founding of several settlements in what is now the American Southwest.
Another notable figure was Francisca Sedillo, a prominent landowner and rancher who lived in the region of present-day New Mexico in the early 19th century. Francisca Sedillo was born in 1785 and owned vast tracts of land along the Rio Grande, where she raised cattle and horses.
In the late 19th century, Mariano Sedillo was a respected politician and businessman in the territory of New Mexico. He served as a member of the Territorial Council and was involved in various commercial ventures, including mining and ranching. Mariano Sedillo was born in 1837 and lived until 1914.
Manuel Sedillo, born in 1892, was a renowned artist and painter from New Mexico who was known for his vibrant depictions of Southwestern landscapes and Native American themes. His works are featured in several museums and galleries across the United States.
Lastly, Emilio Sedillo, born in 1918, was a distinguished educator and civil rights advocate in California. He played a pivotal role in promoting educational opportunities for Hispanic communities and was recognized for his contributions to advancing equal rights and social justice.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sedillo
Among Census respondents with the surname Sedillo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Sedillo 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 Sedillo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino84.0% · 2,945
- White13.0% · 456
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 34
- Two or more races0.7% · 24
- Black or African American0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sedillo
Sedillo 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
#8,844
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,704
+304 bearers (+8.9%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Up 16 places
2020
#8,951
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,508
-196 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 1.17
Rank movement Down 107 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,860 | 3,400 | 1.26 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,844 | 3,704 | 1.26 | +304 bearers (+8.9%) | Up 16 places |
| 2020 | #8,951 | 3,508 | 1.17 | -196 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 107 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 Sedillo 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 | #8,844 | #8,951 | -1.2% |
| Count | 3,704 | 3,508 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.26 | 1.17 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sedillo bearers went from 3,704 to 3,508 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 107 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,844 to #8,951.
FAQ
Sedillo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sedillo?
Name Census estimates that about 4,023 living Americans carry the surname Sedillo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 85,199 residents.
How common is Sedillo?
Sedillo ranks #8,951 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.17 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 3,508 people with the surname Sedillo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.17 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 Sedillo.
Has Sedillo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sedillo went from 3,704 recorded bearers to 3,508. That is a decrease of 196 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,844 to #8,951.
What does the Census say about the background of Sedillo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sedillo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 84.0%. The next largest groups are White (13.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.3%). 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 Sedillo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (2,945 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sedillo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (84.0%), White (13.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.3%). 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 Sedillo (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 Sedillo mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from any of the various places named Sedillo in 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 Sedillo (1.17 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 Sedillo?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.