2000
#15,154
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,785
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Urrea
A Basque toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "hazelnut tree" or "hazel grove."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,641 Americans carry the last name Urrea. That puts it at #12,780 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 129,782 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Urrea 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
2.6K
1 in 129,782
Census rank
#12,780
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,303 bearers of the surname Urrea in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12780th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Urrea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Urrea
The surname Urrea originated in Spain during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Spanish word "urria," which means "bear" in the Basque language. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a bear-inhabited area or had some association with bears.
The earliest known record of the Urrea surname dates back to the 12th century. In 1195, a document from the Monastery of Santa María de Huerta in the province of Soria mentioned a person named Rodrigo de Urrea.
The Urrea family was prominent in the Kingdom of Aragon during the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable member was Lope Fernández de Urrea, a military leader and diplomat who served under King James II of Aragon in the late 13th century.
In the 15th century, the Urrea family established a noble lineage in the region of Navarre. Juan de Urrea (1420-1475) was a renowned poet and member of the court of King Juan II of Aragon. His son, Pedro Manuel de Urrea (1486-1524), was also a celebrated writer and translator.
The name Urrea can be found in various historical records from different regions of Spain, such as Catalonia, Aragon, and Navarre. Variations in spelling include Urría, Urrea, and Urria.
Another notable figure with the Urrea surname was Martín de Urrea y Arizmendi (1565-1624), a Spanish military officer and explorer who served as the Governor of New Mexico from 1601 to 1608. He played a significant role in the early exploration and colonization of the American Southwest.
In the 18th century, Gaspar de Urrea y Lazcano (1700-1763) was a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator who served as the Governor of Nueva Vizcaya (present-day northern Mexico) from 1751 to 1760.
The Urrea surname has also been associated with several places in Spain, such as Urrea de Gaén in Teruel, Urrea de Jalón in Zaragoza, and Urrea de León in Zamora, suggesting that the name may have been derived from these locations or vice versa.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Urrea
Among Census respondents with the surname Urrea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Urrea 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 Urrea surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.1% · 2,121
- White6.5% · 150
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 12
- Black or African American0.5% · 11
- Two or more races0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Urrea
Urrea 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
#13,007
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,360
+575 bearers (+32.2%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Up 2,147 places
2020
#12,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,303
-57 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Up 227 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,154 | 1,785 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,007 | 2,360 | 0.80 | +575 bearers (+32.2%) | Up 2,147 places |
| 2020 | #12,780 | 2,303 | 0.77 | -57 bearers (-2.4%) | Up 227 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 Urrea 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 | #13,007 | #12,780 | 1.7% |
| Count | 2,360 | 2,303 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.77 | -3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Urrea bearers went from 2,360 to 2,303 (-2.4% change). The surname moved up 227 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,007 to #12,780.
FAQ
Urrea surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Urrea?
Name Census estimates that about 2,641 living Americans carry the surname Urrea. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 129,782 residents.
How common is Urrea?
Urrea ranks #12,780 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,303 people with the surname Urrea. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,641), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Urrea.
Has Urrea become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Urrea went from 2,360 recorded bearers to 2,303. That is a decrease of 57 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,007 to #12,780.
What does the Census say about the background of Urrea?
Among Census respondents with the surname Urrea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.1%. The next largest groups are White (6.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Urrea in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (2,121 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Urrea appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.1%), White (6.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.5%). 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 Urrea (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 Urrea mean?
A Basque toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "hazelnut tree" or "hazel grove." 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 Urrea (0.77 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 have the last name Urrea?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Urrea at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.