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

Somoza, 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 Somoza surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Somoza in America

Somoza is the 21218th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Somoza surname appeared 1,237 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 Somoza.

We can also compare 2010 data for Somoza 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 Somoza

The surname "SOMOZA" is of Spanish origin, originating from the Iberian Peninsula during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "somoza," which referred to a small hillock or mound in certain regions of Spain.

The name's earliest recorded instances can be traced back to the 13th century, with mentions of individuals bearing the surname appearing in various historical documents from that era. One notable example is found in the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), a 14th-century manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile, which lists several individuals with the surname Somoza among the participants in royal hunting expeditions.

In the 15th century, the name Somoza is recorded in the "Libro de Repartimiento de Jerez" (Book of Distribution of Jerez), a document detailing the distribution of land and properties in the city of Jerez de la Frontera, located in southern Spain. This suggests that individuals with this surname had established themselves in the region during that period.

The name Somoza has been associated with several notable figures throughout history. One prominent individual was Rodrigo de Somoza, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Guatemala in the 16th century. Another notable figure was Andrés de Somoza, a Spanish naval officer and explorer who served as the governor of the Philippines in the late 16th century.

During the 17th century, the surname Somoza gained prominence in the Americas, particularly in the region now known as Nicaragua. One of the earliest recorded individuals with this surname in the region was Pedro de Somoza, a Spanish settler who arrived in Nicaragua in the early 1600s and played a significant role in the colonization and development of the area.

In the 19th and 20th centuries, several members of the Somoza family rose to prominence in Nicaraguan politics. José Santos Zelaya Somoza (1841-1919) served as the President of Nicaragua from 1893 to 1909. His nephew, Anastasio Somoza García (1896-1956), became a prominent military leader and later served as the President of Nicaragua from 1937 to 1947 and again from 1950 to 1956, establishing a dynastic rule that lasted until 1979.

Other notable figures with the surname Somoza include Manuel Somoza (1908-1977), a Nicaraguan businessman and politician who served as the President of Nicaragua from 1967 to 1972, and Anastasio Somoza Debayle (1925-1980), who became the President of Nicaragua in 1967 but was later overthrown during the Nicaraguan Revolution in 1979.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Somoza

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

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 Somoza 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 Somoza 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 Somoza was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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