On April 23rd, Spanish Language Day, the Queen Sofia Spanish Institute recognizes the significant presence of last names with origins in the Spanish language in the United States.
We highlight the great increase in these last names over the past 30 years as well as the historical Hispanic marker that they represent for the American populace.
Our report shows how last names of Spanish language origin already account for six of the 15 most common last names in the United States. These include García, Rodríguez and Martínez, which are among the 10 most common last names in the country.
In addition, among the top 100 we find up to 24 last names of Spanish origin according to the latest data from the U.S. Census. This figure is expected to increase in the next update anticipated at the end of 2021, in which last names such as Vázquez, Romero, Moreno or Herrera may enter among the 100 most common last names.
State by state, California and New Mexico stand out in the list, where according to the latest data, the three most common last names have Spanish language roots. Other states where these last names are highly prevalent are Arizona, Colorado, New Mexico, and Texas.
