2000
#18,526
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,374
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.51
Rare Last name
Taboada
A Galician toponymic surname indicating someone from any of the various places in Galicia, Spain, called Taboada.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,337 Americans carry the last name Taboada. That puts it at #14,145 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 146,664 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Taboada 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
2.3K
1 in 146,664
Census rank
#14,145
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,038 bearers of the surname Taboada in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14145th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Taboada, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Taboada
The surname Taboada is of Galician and Spanish origin, tracing its roots back to the northwestern regions of Spain, particularly Galicia. The name is derived from the Galician word "taboada," which refers to a small forest or grove of oak trees. This suggests that the earliest bearers of this surname may have lived near or owned land with an oak grove.
The name Taboada can be found in historical records dating back to the 12th century. One of the earliest recorded mentions is in the Tumbo de Sobrado, a medieval cartulary from the Monastery of Sobrado in Galicia, where a person named Petrus Taboada is mentioned in a document from 1156.
In the 13th century, the Taboada family was a prominent noble lineage in Galicia. Fernán Pérez de Taboada was a notable figure from this era, serving as a knight and nobleman under King Alfonso IX of León and Castile in the early 1200s.
The name Taboada has also appeared in various spellings throughout history, such as Tavarada, Tavayrada, and Tabarada, reflecting regional variations and language influences.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Taboada was Gonzalo de Taboada, a prominent Galician nobleman who lived in the late 14th century. Another notable bearer of the name was Rodrigo de Taboada, a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés in the early 16th century.
In the realm of literature, the Galician writer and poet Rosalía de Castro (1837-1885) was born with the surname Taboada. She is considered one of the most influential figures in the Galician literary renaissance and is celebrated for her works that explored themes of Galician identity and rural life.
Another prominent individual with the Taboada surname was Juan Taboada y Lemos (1844-1917), a Spanish-born lawyer and politician who served as a deputy in the Spanish Congress and was involved in the drafting of the Spanish Civil Code.
Throughout history, the surname Taboada has been associated with various place names and locations in Galicia, such as the town of Taboada in the municipality of Chantada, and the parish of Santa María de Taboada in the municipality of Silleda.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Taboada
Among Census respondents with the surname Taboada, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Taboada 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 Taboada surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino86.5% · 1,762
- White9.0% · 184
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.7% · 76
- Black or African American0.6% · 13
- Two or more races0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Taboada
Taboada 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
#14,409
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,074
+700 bearers (+50.9%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Up 4,117 places
2020
#14,145
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,038
-36 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Up 264 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,526 | 1,374 | 0.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,409 | 2,074 | 0.70 | +700 bearers (+50.9%) | Up 4,117 places |
| 2020 | #14,145 | 2,038 | 0.68 | -36 bearers (-1.7%) | Up 264 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 Taboada 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 | #14,409 | #14,145 | 1.8% |
| Count | 2,074 | 2,038 | -1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.70 | 0.68 | -2.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Taboada bearers went from 2,074 to 2,038 (-1.7% change). The surname moved up 264 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,409 to #14,145.
FAQ
Taboada surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Taboada?
Name Census estimates that about 2,337 living Americans carry the surname Taboada. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 146,664 residents.
How common is Taboada?
Taboada ranks #14,145 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,038 people with the surname Taboada. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,337), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Taboada.
Has Taboada become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Taboada went from 2,074 recorded bearers to 2,038. That is a decrease of 36 (-1.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,409 to #14,145.
What does the Census say about the background of Taboada?
Among Census respondents with the surname Taboada, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 86.5%. The next largest groups are White (9.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Taboada in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.5% (1,762 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Taboada appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (86.5%), White (9.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.7%). 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 Taboada (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 Taboada mean?
A Galician toponymic surname indicating someone from any of the various places in Galicia, Spain, called Taboada. 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 Taboada (0.68 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 Americans have the surname Taboada?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.