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

Souza, 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 Souza surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Souza in America

Souza is the 1601st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Souza surname appeared 22,373 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 8 people would have the surname Souza.

We can also compare 2010 data for Souza 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 Souza

The surname "SOUZA" is believed to have originated in Portugal and Spain, and it is derived from the Latin word "salice," which means "willow." The earliest recorded instances of this surname date back to the 12th century in the Iberian Peninsula.

In Portugal, the name was initially spelled as "Sousa," and it was associated with the town of Sousa, located in the northern region of the country. The town itself was named after the Sousa River, which flows through the area and was once lined with willow trees.

One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name "Sousa" was Gomes Mendes de Sousa, a Portuguese nobleman who lived in the 12th century and fought alongside King Afonso Henriques during the conquest of Lisbon from the Moors in 1147.

As Portuguese explorers and settlers ventured to different parts of the world, the surname "Sousa" spread to various regions, including Brazil and other parts of South America. Over time, the spelling evolved to "SOUZA," particularly in Brazil.

In Brazil, one of the most notable individuals with the surname "SOUZA" was Tomé de Souza, who was appointed as the first Governor-General of Brazil in 1549. He played a crucial role in the early colonization and administration of the Portuguese colony.

Another prominent figure was Luís de Sousa, a 16th-century Portuguese historian and author who wrote the historical work "Vida de D. Frei Bartolomeu dos Mártires," which chronicled the life of the Archbishop of Braga.

In the realm of literature, the Brazilian writer and playwright Raquel de Queiroz, born in 1910, gained significant recognition for her novels and plays, including "O Quinze" and "Memorial de Maria Moura."

Martinho da Vila, born in 1938, is a renowned Brazilian samba composer and singer who has left an indelible mark on the country's musical landscape with his contributions to the genre.

Additionally, Pedro Leopoldo Souza Cruz, born in 1864, was a Brazilian businessman and industrialist who founded the Souza Cruz tobacco company, which became one of the largest cigarette manufacturers in Brazil.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Souza

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

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

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

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