2000
#257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106,631
First available Census row
Per 100,000 39.53
Common Last name
Soto
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a grove or small wood.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 166,464 Americans carry the last name Soto. That puts it at #188 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 48.57 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,059 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Soto 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Soto with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
166K
1 in 2,059
Census rank
#188
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
48.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
145K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 145,165 bearers of the surname Soto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 48.57 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 188th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Soto, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Black (0.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Soto
The surname Soto has its origins in Spain and dates back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "soto," which means a grove or thicket of trees. The name likely originated in northern Spain, where such wooded areas were common.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Soto appears in the Becerro de las Behetrías, a medieval document from the 14th century that listed the names of landowners and their properties in the region of Castile. This suggests that the name was already well-established by that time.
Another notable historical reference to the name Soto is found in the Libro de la Montería, a hunting treatise written in the late 13th century during the reign of King Alfonso XI of Castile. The book mentions several places with the name "Soto," indicating that the name was associated with specific locations.
The earliest known bearer of the surname Soto was Hernando de Soto, a Spanish explorer and conquistador born in 1496 in Villanueva de la Serena, Extremadura. He is famous for leading the first European expedition to explore the present-day southeastern United States, including the Mississippi River.
Another notable figure with the surname Soto was Domingo de Soto, a 16th-century Dominican friar and theologian born in Segovia, Spain, in 1494. He was a prominent member of the School of Salamanca and made significant contributions to the field of economics and moral philosophy.
In the realm of literature, the Spanish poet and playwright Félix Lope de Vega y Carpio, born in 1562, is believed to have had ancestors with the surname Soto. His plays and poems were highly influential during the Spanish Golden Age.
Moving to the New World, Hernando de Soto's expedition through the southeastern United States in the 16th century led to the establishment of several place names derived from his surname, such as Soto County in Arkansas and Soto Prairie in Illinois.
In the 20th century, the Mexican-American author and activist Gloria E. Anzaldúa, born in 1942 in Hargill, Texas, used the surname Soto as part of her pen name. Her influential works explored issues of identity, feminism, and the Chicano experience.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Soto
Among Census respondents with the surname Soto, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Black (0.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Soto 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 Soto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.8% · 134,723
- White5.4% · 7,872
- Black or African American0.6% · 920
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 753
- Two or more races0.4% · 514
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 383
Timeline
Historical Census data for Soto
Soto 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
#191
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 144,451
+37,820 bearers (+35.5%)
Per 100,000 48.97
Rank movement Up 66 places
2020
#188
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 145,165
+714 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 48.57
Rank movement Up 3 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #257 | 106,631 | 39.53 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #191 | 144,451 | 48.97 | +37,820 bearers (+35.5%) | Up 66 places |
| 2020 | #188 | 145,165 | 48.57 | +714 bearers (+0.5%) | Up 3 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 Soto 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 | #191 | #188 | 1.6% |
| Count | 144,451 | 145,165 | 0.5% |
| Per 100K | 48.97 | 48.57 | -0.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Soto bearers went from 144,451 to 145,165 (+0.5% change). The surname moved up 3 positions in the national ranking, going from #191 to #188.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Soto
FAQ
Soto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Soto?
Name Census estimates that about 166,464 living Americans carry the surname Soto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,059 residents.
How common is Soto?
Soto ranks #188 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 48.57 per 100,000 residents, which is about 49 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 145,165 people with the surname Soto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (166,464), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 48.57 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 48.57 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 49 of them to have the surname Soto.
Has Soto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Soto went from 144,451 recorded bearers to 145,165. That is an increase of 714 (+0.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #191 to #188.
What does the Census say about the background of Soto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Soto, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.8%. The next largest groups are White (5.4%) and Black (0.6%). 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 Soto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (134,723 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Soto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.8%), White (5.4%), Black (0.6%). 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 Soto (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 Soto mean?
A Spanish toponymic surname referring to someone who lived near a grove or small wood. 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 Soto (48.57 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 are called Soto?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Soto on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.