Vargo last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Vargo

Derived from a Hungarian word meaning "cobbler" or "shoemaker," indicating the occupation of the original bearer.

Vargo, 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 Vargo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Vargo in America

Vargo is the 4553rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Vargo surname appeared 7,787 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Vargo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Vargo 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 4553 4104 10.37%
Count 7,787 7,990 -2.57%
Proportion per 100k 2.64 2.96 -11.43%

The history of the last name Vargo

The surname Vargo is of Hungarian origin and dates back to the early medieval period. It is believed to have originated from the Hungarian village of Vargyu, which is located in the eastern part of the country near the Romanian border. The name is derived from the Old Hungarian word "varga," meaning "shoemaker" or "cobbler."

One of the earliest known references to the Vargo surname can be found in a document from 1389, which mentions a man named Petrus Vargo residing in the town of Kassa (now Košice, Slovakia). This record suggests that the name was already established in the region by the late 14th century.

In the 15th century, there are records of a family named Vargo living in the village of Várgede (now Vorokhta, Ukraine). The family was involved in the local shoemaking trade, which further reinforces the occupational origin of the surname.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Vargo name began to spread across Hungary and into neighboring regions. In 1612, a man named Janos Vargo was born in the town of Nagyvárad (now Oradea, Romania). He later became a renowned scholar and writer, publishing several works on Hungarian history and literature.

Another notable figure with the Vargo surname was Istvan Vargo (1760-1828), a Hungarian military officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars. He was born in the village of Tiszabecs and fought in several major battles, including the Battle of Austerlitz and the Battle of Borodino.

In the 19th century, the Vargo name appeared in various parts of the Austro-Hungarian Empire. One prominent individual was Mihaly Vargo (1827-1901), a Hungarian politician and journalist who played a significant role in the Revolution of 1848-1849.

As the 20th century approached, the Vargo surname had spread beyond Hungary and could be found in other parts of Europe and even in the Americas. One notable figure was Antal Vargo (1892-1967), a Hungarian-American artist and sculptor who emigrated to the United States in the early 1900s and became known for his works depicting scenes from Hungarian folklore and history.

Throughout its history, the Vargo surname has maintained a strong connection to its Hungarian roots and the occupation of shoemaking or cobbling. While the name has since spread across various countries and continents, its origins can be traced back to the medieval villages of Hungary and the skilled craftsmen who bore this surname.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Vargo

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

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 Vargo was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 94.20% 7,335
Non-Hispanic Black Only 1.09% 85
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.74% 58
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.26% 20
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.32% 103
Hispanic Origin 2.39% 186

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 Vargo has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 94.20% 95.78% -1.66%
Black 1.09% 0.80% 30.69%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.74% 0.60% 20.90%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.26% 0.33% -23.73%
Two or More Races 1.32% 0.95% 32.60%
Hispanic 2.39% 1.54% 43.26%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Vargo last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/vargo-surname-popularity/.

"Vargo last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/vargo-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Vargo last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/vargo-surname-popularity/.

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