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

Tineo, 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 Tineo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tineo in America

Tineo is the 11312th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tineo surname appeared 2,792 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Tineo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tineo 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 Tineo

The surname Tineo has its origins in the Iberian Peninsula, specifically in the region of Galicia, Spain. It is believed to have emerged during the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century. The name Tineo is derived from the Latin word "tinea," which means "moth" or "small insect."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Tineo can be found in the "Tumbo de Celanova," a medieval cartulary from the Galician monastery of Celanova. This document, dating back to the 12th century, includes references to individuals with the surname Tineo, suggesting that the name had already been established in the region by that time.

In the 14th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Tineo was Álvaro Tineo, a Galician nobleman and military commander who fought in the Reconquista campaigns against the Moors. He is mentioned in several historical chronicles of the time, particularly for his role in the capture of the city of Algeciras in 1344.

During the 15th century, the Tineo surname can be found in various records from the Kingdom of Castile, including tax rolls and census documents. One prominent individual from this period was Juan Tineo, a Sevillian merchant and explorer who participated in the early Spanish expeditions to the Americas in the late 15th and early 16th centuries.

In the 16th century, the Tineo surname gained prominence in the arts, with the painter Juan de Tineo (c. 1510-1583) being one of the most notable figures. He was a Renaissance artist from Seville, known for his religious paintings and his work in the Sevillian Cathedral.

Another significant figure bearing the Tineo surname was Pedro Tineo (1564-1616), a Jesuit priest and linguist who was instrumental in the translation and preservation of indigenous languages in Mexico during the Spanish colonial period.

As the Tineo surname spread beyond its Galician roots, it can be found in various regions of Spain, as well as in Portuguese-speaking areas and throughout the Spanish-speaking world, particularly in Latin America, due to the migrations and conquests of the Spanish Empire.

While the surname Tineo may have evolved from a word related to insects, its historical significance lies in the individuals who carried it, contributing to various fields such as military, exploration, arts, and language preservation throughout the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tineo

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

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

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

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