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

Tafoya, 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 Tafoya surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tafoya in America

Tafoya is the 3532nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tafoya surname appeared 10,114 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Tafoya.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tafoya 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 Tafoya

The surname Tafoya originated in Spain and is believed to have derived from the Arabic word "tafoya," meaning pottery maker or potter. This name likely came into existence during the period of Moorish rule in parts of Spain, which lasted from the 8th to the 15th century.

The earliest recorded use of the name Tafoya can be traced back to the 13th century in parts of Andalusia, a region in southern Spain that was under Moorish control for several centuries. During this time, the name was likely associated with individuals or families involved in the pottery-making trade, which was a significant industry in the region.

As the Reconquista progressed, and the Moors were gradually expelled from Spain, many families with Arabic-derived names, including Tafoya, migrated to other parts of the Iberian Peninsula and eventually to the Americas during the Spanish colonization of the New World.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Tafoya surname appears in the Libro de las Bienandanzas e Fortunas, a 14th-century manuscript written by Lope García de Salazar, a Spanish historian and nobleman. The manuscript mentions a certain Juan Tafoya, who was involved in a military conflict during that period.

In the 16th century, a notable figure bearing the Tafoya surname was Diego Tafoya, a Spanish explorer and conquistador who accompanied Hernán Cortés during the conquest of Mexico. He was born in Seville, Spain, around 1490 and participated in several expeditions and battles against the Aztecs.

Another prominent individual with the Tafoya surname was Fray Juan de Tafoya, a Spanish Franciscan friar who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was instrumental in the establishment of several missions and churches in New Mexico, which was then part of the Spanish colonial territory known as New Spain.

In the 18th century, Juan Antonio Tafoya y Luján was a notable figure in colonial New Mexico. He served as a military officer and held various administrative positions in the region, including that of the Alcalde Mayor (Mayor) of Santa Fe.

In the 19th century, one of the most notable individuals with the Tafoya surname was Manuel Antonio Chacón Tafoya, a prominent politician and landowner in New Mexico. He served as a delegate to the United States Congress and played a crucial role in the transition of New Mexico from a Spanish colony to a U.S. territory.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tafoya

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

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

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

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