2010
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Waco
A surname originating from Native American language, referring to someone from the Waco tribe.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 122 Americans carry the last name Waco. That puts it at #152,339 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,809,462 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Waco 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
122
1 in 2,809,462
Census rank
#152,339
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
106
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 106 bearers of the surname Waco in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152339th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Waco, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.6%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Waco
The surname Waco has its origins in the Spanish language, and it is believed to have originated in Spain during the medieval period. The name is derived from the Spanish word "vaco," which means "cow" or "cattle." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the Waco surname might have been involved in cattle farming or related occupations.
In its earliest recorded instances, the name appeared with various spellings such as "Vaco," "Vacco," and "Wacco." These variations were likely due to regional dialects and the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Waco can be found in the Libro de la Montería (Book of the Hunt), a 14th-century manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile. This document contains references to several individuals with the surname Waco, indicating that the name was already in use by that time.
During the 16th century, as Spanish explorers and settlers ventured to the Americas, some individuals bearing the Waco surname accompanied them. This led to the establishment of the name in various regions of the New World.
Notable individuals with the surname Waco throughout history include:
1. Diego Waco (c. 1520 - c. 1580), a Spanish soldier and explorer who participated in the conquest of Chile and served as a lieutenant under Pedro de Valdivia.
2. Juana Waco (c. 1550 - c. 1610), a landowner and philanthropist in colonial Mexico, known for her charitable contributions to local churches and hospitals.
3. Rodrigo Waco (c. 1625 - c. 1695), a Spanish soldier who fought in the Thirty Years' War and later served as a magistrate in Seville.
4. María Waco (c. 1670 - c. 1740), a renowned painter from Madrid, whose works are displayed in several museums in Spain.
5. Andrés Waco (c. 1820 - c. 1890), a prominent scholar and educator in Argentina, who played a significant role in the establishment of the country's educational system.
Over time, the surname Waco has spread to various parts of the world, carried by individuals of Spanish descent or those who adopted the name through marriage or other means. However, its origins can be traced back to medieval Spain, where it likely emerged as an occupational surname related to cattle farming.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Waco
Among Census respondents with the surname Waco, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.6%) and Hispanic (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Waco 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 Waco surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 89
- American Indian and Alaska Native6.6% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino4.7% · 5
- Black or African American1.9% · 2
- Two or more races1.9% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Waco
Waco appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 289 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,339 | 106 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Up 289 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 Waco 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 | #152,628 | #152,339 | 0.2% |
| Count | 107 | 106 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -11.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Waco bearers went from 107 to 106 (-0.9% change). The surname moved up 289 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #152,339.
FAQ
Waco surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Waco?
Name Census estimates that about 122 living Americans carry the surname Waco. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,809,462 residents.
How common is Waco?
Waco ranks #152,339 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 106 people with the surname Waco. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (122), 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 Waco.
Has Waco become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Waco went from 107 recorded bearers to 106. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #152,339.
What does the Census say about the background of Waco?
Among Census respondents with the surname Waco, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.6%) and Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Waco in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Waco appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (6.6%), Hispanic (4.7%). 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 Waco (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 Waco mean?
A surname originating from Native American language, referring to someone from the Waco tribe. 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 Waco (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 many people share the surname Waco?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.