Find out how popular the last name Sobrepeña is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Sobrepeña.

Sobrepeña, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Sobrepeña surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sobrepeña in America

Sobrepeña is the 107134th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sobrepeña surname appeared 166 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Sobrepeña.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sobrepeña to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Sobrepeña

The surname SOBREPENA has its origins in the Iberian Peninsula, specifically in the regions of Spain and Portugal. It is derived from the Spanish and Portuguese words "sobre" meaning "over" or "above" and "pena" meaning "rock" or "cliff". This suggests that the name may have originated from a geographical location or landmark with this description, such as a settlement built on or near a prominent rock formation.

The earliest recorded instances of the SOBREPENA surname can be traced back to the late medieval period in the 13th and 14th centuries. It is believed that the name first appeared in regional records and documents from areas such as Catalonia, Aragon, and Valencia in Spain, as well as parts of northern Portugal. Some of the earliest known examples include Juan de Sobrepena, a landowner from Zaragoza, Spain, whose name appears in a land registry from 1312.

During the 15th and 16th centuries, the SOBREPENA name gained prominence as it was borne by several notable individuals. One such figure was Pedro de Sobrepena, a Spanish explorer and navigator who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493. Another was Juana de Sobrepena, a renowned poet and writer from Seville, Spain, who lived from 1510 to 1587.

As the name spread across the Iberian Peninsula and eventually to the Spanish colonies in the Americas, it underwent various spelling variations. Some of these include Sobrepenna, Sobrepena, and Sobrepeña. The place name "Sobrepena" also emerged in some regions, likely named after individuals bearing the surname.

In the 17th century, the SOBREPENA name appeared in records from the Spanish colonies in Mexico and Peru. One notable bearer was Francisco de Sobrepena, a military officer and explorer who played a role in the conquest of the Inca Empire in the 1530s. Another was María de Sobrepena, a prominent landowner and philanthropist in Mexico City during the late 1600s.

As the centuries passed, the SOBREPENA surname continued to be carried by individuals of both Spanish and Portuguese descent. In the 19th century, José Sobrepena was a renowned Spanish painter and artist born in Barcelona in 1808. Another notable figure was Manuel Sobrepena, a Portuguese politician and diplomat who served as ambassador to several European countries in the late 1800s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sobrepeña

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Sobrepeña.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Sobrepeña was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Sobrepeña has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Sobrepeña was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Sobrepeña, please contact us.

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