2000
#137,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Tellas
Southern European surname potentially derived from the Greek word "tellos" meaning end or boundary.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Tellas. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Tellas 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Tellas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Tellas, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.9%) and Black (10.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Tellas
The surname Tellas is believed to have originated in ancient Greece, possibly derived from the Greek word "tellos," meaning "end" or "boundary." It is thought to have been used as a descriptive name for someone who lived on the outskirts or boundaries of a town or village.
During the Byzantine era, the name Tellas can be found in various historical records and manuscripts, although its exact origins remain uncertain. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in a 9th-century manuscript that mentions a soldier named Tellas who served in the Byzantine army.
As the Greek population dispersed throughout the Mediterranean region and beyond, the name Tellas spread to different parts of Europe. In the 13th century, there are records of a merchant named Tellas residing in Venice, Italy, who traded goods between the Byzantine Empire and Western Europe.
In the 15th century, a notable figure bearing the name Tellas was Georgios Tellas, a Greek scholar and philosopher who lived in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul). He was renowned for his contributions to the study of ancient Greek literature and philosophy.
During the 16th century, the name Tellas appeared in various parts of Europe, including France and Spain. One notable individual was Juan Tellas, a Spanish explorer who accompanied Christopher Columbus on his second voyage to the Americas in 1493.
In the 17th century, a prominent figure with the surname Tellas was Petros Tellas, a Greek theologian and writer who played a significant role in the Greek Orthodox Church's efforts to preserve its traditions and teachings during the Ottoman rule of Greece.
Other notable individuals with the surname Tellas include:
1. Dimitrios Tellas (1825-1892), a Greek politician and diplomat who served as the Prime Minister of Greece in the late 19th century.
2. Alexandros Tellas (1870-1945), a Greek military officer who played a crucial role in the Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1922.
3. Evangelos Tellas (1897-1976), a Greek artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraiture.
4. Nikolaos Tellas (1918-1998), a renowned Greek architect who designed several iconic buildings in Athens and other parts of Greece.
5. Maria Tellas (1932-2010), a Greek actress and theater director who made significant contributions to the development of modern Greek theater.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Tellas
Among Census respondents with the surname Tellas, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.9%) and Black (10.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Tellas 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 Tellas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.4% · 73
- Hispanic or Latino20.9% · 23
- Black or African American10.9% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Tellas
Tellas 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
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,385 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-3 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 3,245 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #137,816 | 112 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,385 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 3,245 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 Tellas 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 | #146,201 | #149,446 | -2.2% |
| Count | 113 | 110 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Tellas bearers went from 113 to 110 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 3,245 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #149,446.
FAQ
Tellas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Tellas?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Tellas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Tellas?
Tellas ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 110 people with the surname Tellas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Tellas.
Has Tellas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Tellas went from 113 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 3 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #146,201 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Tellas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Tellas, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (20.9%) and Black (10.9%). 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 Tellas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.4% (73 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Tellas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.4%), Hispanic (20.9%), Black (10.9%). 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 Tellas (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 Tellas mean?
Southern European surname potentially derived from the Greek word "tellos" meaning end or boundary. 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 Tellas (0.04 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 Tellas?
Want to know how many people have the last name Tellas? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.