2000
#6,344
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,942
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.83
Rare Last name
Tatro
Derived from the French surname Terreaux, referring to someone who lived near a terrace or hillside.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,399 Americans carry the last name Tatro. That puts it at #6,874 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 63,485 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tatro 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
5.4K
1 in 63,485
Census rank
#6,874
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,708 bearers of the surname Tatro in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6874th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tatro, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tatro
The surname Tatro is of French origin, originating from the northern regions of France during the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word "tater," meaning "to feel" or "to touch," suggesting that the name may have been a descriptive nickname given to an ancestor who had a notable skill or profession involving touch or feeling.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Tatro surname can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and property in England, commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. This historical record mentions a person named "Taterus," which is thought to be an early variant of the Tatro name.
In the 13th century, the Tatro surname appeared in various forms, such as "Tatere," "Taterio," and "Taterius," in various official documents and records across northern France and parts of Normandy. This variation in spelling was common during that time due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions.
One notable individual bearing the Tatro surname was Jean Tatro, a French merchant and explorer who lived in the late 15th century. He is known for his travels to the Mediterranean region and the Levant, where he established trade routes and brought back valuable goods to France.
Another famous Tatro was Pierre Tatro, a French military leader born in 1587. He served as a captain in the French army during the Thirty Years' War and played a crucial role in several battles against the Spanish and Imperial forces.
In the 17th century, the Tatro surname gained prominence in the region of Normandy, where several families with this name held significant landholdings and influential positions within their local communities. One such family was the Tatros of Rouen, who were renowned for their involvement in the wine trade and their patronage of the arts.
The Tatro surname also spread to other parts of Europe, including Belgium and the Netherlands, where variations such as "Tatrou" and "Tatrouw" emerged. In the 18th century, a Dutch artist named Willem Tatrouw gained recognition for his landscape paintings and portraiture.
As the Tatro surname continued to evolve and spread across different regions, it maintained its connection to its French origins and the fascinating history associated with its meaning and early bearers.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tatro
Among Census respondents with the surname Tatro, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Tatro 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 Tatro surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.1% · 4,289
- Two or more races4.1% · 191
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 166
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 29
- Black or African American0.4% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tatro
Tatro 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
#6,636
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,102
+160 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 1.73
Rank movement Down 292 places
2020
#6,874
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,708
-394 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 1.58
Rank movement Down 238 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,344 | 4,942 | 1.83 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,636 | 5,102 | 1.73 | +160 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 292 places |
| 2020 | #6,874 | 4,708 | 1.58 | -394 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 238 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 Tatro 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 | #6,636 | #6,874 | -3.6% |
| Count | 5,102 | 4,708 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.73 | 1.58 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tatro bearers went from 5,102 to 4,708 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 238 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,636 to #6,874.
FAQ
Tatro surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tatro?
Name Census estimates that about 5,399 living Americans carry the surname Tatro. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 63,485 residents.
How common is Tatro?
Tatro ranks #6,874 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.58 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,708 people with the surname Tatro. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,399), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.58 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Tatro.
Has Tatro become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tatro went from 5,102 recorded bearers to 4,708. That is a decrease of 394 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,636 to #6,874.
What does the Census say about the background of Tatro?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tatro, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Tatro in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.1% (4,289 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tatro appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.1%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Tatro (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 Tatro mean?
Derived from the French surname Terreaux, referring to someone who lived near a terrace or hillside. 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 Tatro (1.58 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 people share the surname Tatro?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.