2000
#14,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,906
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.71
Rare Last name
Suniga
A Basque surname derived from the word "su," meaning "fire," and a suffix indicating locality or origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,128 Americans carry the last name Suniga. That puts it at #15,227 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 161,069 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Suniga 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
2.1K
1 in 161,069
Census rank
#15,227
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,856 bearers of the surname Suniga in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15227th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Suniga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (8.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Suniga
The surname Suniga originated in Spain, with roots dating back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Basque word "suni," meaning fire or flame, coupled with the suffix "-ga," often used to denote a place of origin. This suggests that the name may have referred to a person or family associated with a location where fires or flames were prominent, such as a blacksmith's forge or a volcanic region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Suniga name appears in the Becerro de Behetrías, a medieval census of landholdings and settlements in the Kingdom of Castile, compiled in the 14th century. This document mentions individuals bearing the name Suniga residing in the region of Burgos, located in northern Spain.
In the 15th century, the Suniga family gained prominence as members of the Castilian nobility. Notably, Álvaro de Zúñiga y Guzmán (1410-1488) served as the Duke of Arévalo and played a significant role in the political intrigues surrounding the reign of Isabella I of Castile. His son, Álvaro de Zúñiga y Guzmán (1455-1531), also held influential positions as the Duke of Béjar and a member of the Royal Council of Castile.
The Suniga name has also been linked to various place names in Spain, such as Zuñiga, a municipality in the province of Navarre, and Zúñiga, a village in the province of Badajoz. These locations likely derived their names from the Suniga family or their ancestral lands.
Another notable figure bearing the Suniga surname was Juan de Zúñiga Avellaneda (1556-1631), a Spanish playwright and poet who authored several works, including the comedies "El amor invencionero" and "El hombre Dios."
In the realm of exploration and colonization, Diego López de Zúñiga (c. 1510-1564) was a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru alongside Francisco Pizarro. He later served as the governor of the Charcas region, now part of modern-day Bolivia.
While the Suniga name has its roots in Spain, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly Latin America, due to Spanish colonial expansion and migration patterns. Individuals bearing this surname can be found in various countries, including Mexico, Colombia, and Argentina, among others.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Suniga
Among Census respondents with the surname Suniga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (8.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Suniga 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 Suniga surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino80.3% · 1,490
- White9.3% · 172
- Asian and Pacific Islander8.5% · 157
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 23
- Two or more races0.6% · 12
- Black or African American0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Suniga
Suniga 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
#13,790
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,193
+287 bearers (+15.1%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Up 605 places
2020
#15,227
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,856
-337 bearers (-15.4%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 1,437 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,395 | 1,906 | 0.71 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,790 | 2,193 | 0.74 | +287 bearers (+15.1%) | Up 605 places |
| 2020 | #15,227 | 1,856 | 0.62 | -337 bearers (-15.4%) | Down 1,437 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 Suniga 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 | #13,790 | #15,227 | -10.4% |
| Count | 2,193 | 1,856 | -15.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.62 | -16.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Suniga bearers went from 2,193 to 1,856 (-15.4% change). The surname moved down 1,437 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,790 to #15,227.
FAQ
Suniga surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Suniga?
Name Census estimates that about 2,128 living Americans carry the surname Suniga. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 161,069 residents.
How common is Suniga?
Suniga ranks #15,227 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,856 people with the surname Suniga. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Suniga.
Has Suniga become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Suniga went from 2,193 recorded bearers to 1,856. That is a decrease of 337 (-15.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,790 to #15,227.
What does the Census say about the background of Suniga?
Among Census respondents with the surname Suniga, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 80.3%. The next largest groups are White (9.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (8.5%). 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 Suniga in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.3% (1,490 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Suniga appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (80.3%), White (9.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (8.5%). 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 Suniga (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 Suniga mean?
A Basque surname derived from the word "su," meaning "fire," and a suffix indicating locality or origin. 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 Suniga (0.62 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 common is the surname Suniga?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Suniga on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.