2010
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Selca
A Latinized rendition of the Scottish surname Selkridge, itself derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Selca. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Selca 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Selca in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Selca, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Selca
The surname SELCA has its origins in the Iberian Peninsula, specifically in the region of Galicia in northwestern Spain. It dates back to the 12th century and is thought to derive from the Galician word "selca," meaning a rocky crag or steep cliff. This suggests that the name may have originally been a topographic surname, given to someone who lived near or was associated with such a geographical feature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SELCA can be found in a medieval Galician document from the year 1237, which mentions a landowner named Rodrigo Selca. This provides evidence that the name was already established in the region by the 13th century.
In the late 15th century, a nobleman named Juan Selca was recorded as serving in the court of the Catholic Monarchs, Isabella I of Castile and Ferdinand II of Aragon. He was a high-ranking military officer and played a significant role in the Reconquista, the Christian conquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors.
During the 16th century, the SELCA surname began to spread beyond Galicia as a result of Spanish colonization and exploration. One notable figure was Pedro Selca, a conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico in 1519. Pedro Selca was among the first Europeans to set foot in the Valley of Mexico and witness the grandeur of the Aztec capital, Tenochtitlan.
In the 17th century, a prominent theologian and philosopher named Tomás Selca (1585-1653) gained recognition for his scholarly works on theology and metaphysics. He was a professor at the University of Salamanca and his writings were widely influential in academic circles across Europe.
Another figure of note was Isadora Selca (1678-1742), a Spanish painter renowned for her portraits and religious works. She was one of the few female artists of her time to achieve widespread recognition and her paintings can be found in museums and churches throughout Spain.
While the surname SELCA originated in Galicia, it eventually spread to other parts of Spain and the Americas through migration and colonial expansions. However, its roots can be traced back to the rugged landscape of northwestern Spain, where the name was likely first bestowed upon those living near rocky cliffs or crags.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Selca
Among Census respondents with the surname Selca, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Selca 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 Selca surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.5% · 105
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Selca
Selca appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-4 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,226 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 4,226 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 Selca 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 | #145,220 | #149,446 | -2.9% |
| Count | 114 | 110 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Selca bearers went from 114 to 110 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 4,226 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #149,446.
FAQ
Selca surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Selca?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Selca. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Selca?
Selca ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Selca. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Selca.
Has Selca become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Selca went from 114 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Selca?
Among Census respondents with the surname Selca, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%) and Black (0.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Selca in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Selca appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%), Black (0.9%). 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 Selca (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 Selca mean?
A Latinized rendition of the Scottish surname Selkridge, itself derived from a place name. 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 Selca (0.04 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 Selca?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.