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

Tomar, 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 Tomar surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Tomar in America

Tomar is the 52619th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Tomar surname appeared 394 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 Tomar.

We can also compare 2010 data for Tomar 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 Tomar

The surname Tomar is of Portuguese origin, believed to have originated in the 12th century. It is derived from the name of the town of Tomar, located in central Portugal. Tomar itself is derived from the Arabic word "Tūmār," meaning "marble."

The town of Tomar gained prominence due to the establishment of the Convent of Christ, a UNESCO World Heritage Site, by the Knights Templar in the 12th century. This association with the powerful Templar order likely contributed to the early spread and use of the surname Tomar.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Tomar comes from a document dated 1290, which mentions a certain "Afonso Tomar" as a resident of Tomar. Another early reference is found in the "Livro das Lezírias" (Book of Lezírias), a 14th-century Portuguese land registry, which lists several individuals with the surname Tomar.

During the Age of Exploration in the 15th and 16th centuries, many Portuguese explorers and settlers carried the surname Tomar to various parts of the world. One notable example is João Tomar, a navigator who accompanied Vasco da Gama on his historic voyage to India in 1498.

Another prominent figure with the surname Tomar was Pedro Tomar, a 16th-century Portuguese architect and military engineer. He was responsible for designing and overseeing the construction of several fortifications in Portuguese colonies, including the Fortress of Hormuz in present-day Iran.

In the 17th century, a branch of the Tomar family settled in Brazil, where they became influential landowners and plantation owners. One of the most famous members of this branch was Antônio Tomar de Freitas (1648-1719), a wealthy plantation owner and benefactor in the state of Bahia.

Other notable individuals with the surname Tomar include Manuel Tomar (1768-1832), a Portuguese military officer and governor of Portuguese Timor, and Joaquim Tomar (1830-1902), a Brazilian politician and journalist who played a significant role in the abolition of slavery in Brazil.

While the surname Tomar is predominantly Portuguese in origin, it has also been found in other parts of the world, likely due to migration and intermarriage. However, the bulk of historical references and notable individuals with this surname can be traced back to Portugal and its former colonies.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Tomar

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!