2000
#8,650
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,498
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.30
Rare Last name
Zabala
A Basque toponymic surname derived from the word "zabal," meaning "wide" or "open," referring to a person from a wide, open space.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,236 Americans carry the last name Zabala. That puts it at #7,073 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 65,461 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Zabala 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
5.2K
1 in 65,461
Census rank
#7,073
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,566 bearers of the surname Zabala in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7073rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Zabala, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (15.0%) and White (9.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Zabala
The surname Zabala is of Basque origin, originating from the Basque Country, a region straddling the western Pyrenees in northern Spain and southwestern France. The earliest known records of the name date back to the 12th century.
Zabala is derived from the Basque words "zabala" meaning "wide" or "broad," and likely referred to a person who lived near a broad plain or valley. It may also have been a topographic name denoting someone who lived near a wide area or an open space.
In the 13th century, the name Zabala appeared in various documents and records from the Basque provinces of Gipuzkoa and Bizkaia. One of the earliest recorded instances was in a legal document from 1248, mentioning a landowner named Lope Zabala in the town of Azkoitia, Gipuzkoa.
The name Zabala was also found in several medieval Basque literary works, such as the Basque Book of Poetry, dating back to the 16th century. This suggests that the name was well-established among the Basque nobility and intellectual circles of the time.
Notable historical figures with the surname Zabala include:
1. Juan Antonio Zabala (1650-1711), a Spanish military engineer and architect who designed several fortifications and buildings in the Americas.
2. Miguel Antonio Zabala (1710-1781), a Spanish colonial administrator who served as the governor of Buenos Aires from 1776 to 1780.
3. Juan de Zabala (1568-1636), a Spanish Basque navigator and explorer who participated in expeditions to the Pacific Northwest in the early 17th century.
4. Francisco Zabala (1711-1787), a Spanish Franciscan friar and missionary who established several missions in California during the Spanish colonization.
5. Martín de Zabala (1537-1599), a Spanish Basque soldier and military commander who served in the Spanish Army of Flanders during the Eighty Years' War.
The surname Zabala has also been associated with various place names in the Basque Country, such as Zabala (a town in Bizkaia), and Zabalain (a neighborhood in San Sebastián, Gipuzkoa). These place names likely derived from the same Basque root as the surname, further reflecting the name's deep ties to the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zabala
Among Census respondents with the surname Zabala, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (15.0%) and White (9.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Zabala 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 Zabala surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino73.1% · 3,340
- Asian and Pacific Islander15.0% · 687
- White9.6% · 437
- Two or more races1.3% · 59
- Black or African American0.7% · 32
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Zabala
Zabala 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
#7,637
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,348
+850 bearers (+24.3%)
Per 100,000 1.47
Rank movement Up 1,013 places
2020
#7,073
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,566
+218 bearers (+5.0%)
Per 100,000 1.53
Rank movement Up 564 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,650 | 3,498 | 1.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,637 | 4,348 | 1.47 | +850 bearers (+24.3%) | Up 1,013 places |
| 2020 | #7,073 | 4,566 | 1.53 | +218 bearers (+5.0%) | Up 564 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 Zabala 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 | #7,637 | #7,073 | 7.4% |
| Count | 4,348 | 4,566 | 5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.47 | 1.53 | 3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Zabala bearers went from 4,348 to 4,566 (+5.0% change). The surname moved up 564 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,637 to #7,073.
FAQ
Zabala surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Zabala?
Name Census estimates that about 5,236 living Americans carry the surname Zabala. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 65,461 residents.
How common is Zabala?
Zabala ranks #7,073 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,566 people with the surname Zabala. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,236), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Zabala.
Has Zabala become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Zabala went from 4,348 recorded bearers to 4,566. That is an increase of 218 (+5.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,637 to #7,073.
What does the Census say about the background of Zabala?
Among Census respondents with the surname Zabala, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (15.0%) and White (9.6%). 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 Zabala in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.1% (3,340 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Zabala appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (73.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (15.0%), White (9.6%). 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 Zabala (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 Zabala mean?
A Basque toponymic surname derived from the word "zabal," meaning "wide" or "open," referring to a person from a wide, open space. 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 Zabala (1.53 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 Zabala?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Zabala on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.