Laritza
A feminine name of possible Greek or Latin origin, exact meaning uncertain.
Name Census estimates that about 302 living Americans carry the first name Laritza. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Laritza today is around 20 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Laritza births was 2004 (23 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Laritza. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
People living today
302
~ 1 in 1,134,948 Americans
Peak year
2004
23 babies that year
Average age
20
years old
2022 SSA rank
#16,637
Tracked since 1992
Census
Laritza in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 652 people with the first name Laritza, which placed it at #17,077 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#17,077
National first-name rank
People counted
652
652 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.2
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
Hispanic or Latino
97.2% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Laritza
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Laritza is Hispanic at 97.2%. The next largest groups are White (1.2%) and Black (1.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Laritza 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 name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Laritza at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino97.2% · 634
- White1.2% · 8
- Black or African American1.1% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 2
- Two or more races0.2% · 1
Popularity
Laritza: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Laritza from the 1990s through to the 2020s, spanning 4 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 2000s, with 137 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 2000s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Laritza by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Laritza during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Laritzas live
Origin
Meaning and history of Laritza
The name Laritza is believed to have its origins in the Basque language, an ancient tongue spoken in parts of Spain and France. It is thought to be a variation of the name Laritze, which itself is derived from the Basque word "laritz," meaning oak tree. The oak tree held great significance in Basque mythology and culture, symbolizing strength, endurance, and longevity.
While there is no definitive record of the name's earliest use, some scholars suggest that it may have been present in the Basque region as early as the 9th or 10th century CE. The name's association with the oak tree likely stems from the deep reverence the Basque people held for nature and the natural world.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name Laritza was Laritza de Urroz, a noblewoman from the Kingdom of Navarre, who lived in the 12th century. She was known for her involvement in the political affairs of the region and her support for the rights of the Basque people.
In the 16th century, Laritza Arizmendi, a Basque writer and poet, gained recognition for her works celebrating the beauty and resilience of the Basque landscape and culture. Her poetic verses often drew inspiration from the oak trees that dotted the rolling hills of her homeland.
Another notable figure was Laritza Urbieta, a 17th-century Basque explorer who accompanied Spanish expeditions to the Americas. Her accounts of the new lands and peoples they encountered provided valuable insights into the early encounters between Europeans and the indigenous populations of the Americas.
In the realm of religion, Laritza Zabala, a Basque nun who lived in the late 18th century, was renowned for her piety and her dedication to helping the poor and underprivileged in her community. Her compassion and selfless service earned her a reputation as a living embodiment of the values of the Basque culture.
Finally, in the 19th century, Laritza Aranzadi, a Basque linguist and scholar, made significant contributions to the study and preservation of the Basque language and its rich cultural heritage. Her research and writings helped to maintain the connection between the Basque people and their ancient linguistic roots.
People
Laritza + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Laritza as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with L
Other first names starting with L with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Laritza: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Laritza?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 302 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Laritza going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 1,134,948 US residents.
Is Laritza a common name?
We classify Laritza as "Very Rare". It ranks above 79.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 307 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Laritza most popular?
The single biggest year for Laritza was 2004, when 23 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Laritza is about 20 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Laritza in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 652 people with the name Laritza, or 0.22 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #17,077 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Laritza in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Laritza?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Laritza appears almost entirely female. Of the 646 people counted with this name, 100.0% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Laritza?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Laritza is Hispanic at 97.2%. The next largest groups are White (1.2%) and Black (1.1%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Laritza most often in the Census?
Hispanic is the largest reported group for people named Laritza in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.2% (634 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Laritza in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Laritza a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Laritza in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Laritza still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Laritza in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Laritza can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Laritza?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans are named Laritza on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.