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

Tangarife, 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 Tangarife surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tangarife in America

Tangarife is the 96799th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tangarife surname appeared 188 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Tangarife.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tangarife 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 Tangarife

The surname TANGARIFE is believed to have originated in the Basque region of northern Spain and southwestern France, sometime in the late Middle Ages. It is thought to derive from the Basque words "tanga" meaning "mountain pass" and "rife" meaning "cliff" or "precipice", suggesting that the name may have referred to someone who lived near a treacherous mountain pass.

Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 15th century, where it appears in local parish records and land deeds in the villages surrounding the Pyrenees mountains. Variations in spelling such as "Tangarif", "Tangarife", and "Tangariphe" were common during this period.

The TANGARIFE name does not appear to be referenced in any major historical texts or manuscripts, such as the Domesday Book, likely due to its localized origins in the Basque Country. However, in 1492, a man named Juan Tangarife was recorded as one of the crew members aboard Christopher Columbus' flagship, the Santa Maria, during his voyage to the Americas.

In the 16th century, a noble family by the name of Tangarife owned a small estate in the village of Larrau, near the border of Spain and France. The head of the household, Petri Tangarife (1522-1598), was known for his skill as a mountaineer and often served as a guide for travelers crossing the treacherous Pyrenees passes.

Another notable figure was Catalina Tangarife (1675-1742), a Basque woman renowned for her knowledge of traditional herbal remedies and midwifery. She practiced in the town of Sare and helped deliver countless babies throughout her lifetime.

In the 19th century, a Spanish artist named Joaquín Tangarife (1832-1901) gained recognition for his landscape paintings depicting the rugged beauty of the Pyrenees mountains and the Basque countryside.

Finally, in the early 20th century, a Basque explorer named Xabier Tangarife (1887-1962) led several expeditions into the remote regions of the Pyrenees, documenting the local flora and fauna and advocating for the preservation of the area's natural resources.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tangarife

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

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

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

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