2000
#44,895
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 450
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.17
Very Rare Last name
Aja
A Yoruba name meaning "born face down" or "one who is born with the face downwards."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 570 Americans carry the last name Aja. That puts it at #46,253 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.17 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 601,323 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Aja 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
570
1 in 601,323
Census rank
#46,253
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
497
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 497 bearers of the surname Aja in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.17 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 46253rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Aja, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 59.2%. The next largest groups are White (31.0%) and Black (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Aja
The surname Aja is of Spanish origin, derived from the Arabic word "al-aja," which means "the valley" or "the riverbed." This name can be traced back to the 8th century AD when the Moors conquered parts of the Iberian Peninsula, including present-day Spain and Portugal.
The earliest known record of the surname Aja appears in the Cartulario de San Vicente de Oviedo, a medieval manuscript dating back to the 9th century. This document mentions a nobleman named Gonzalo Aja who owned lands in the region of Asturias, in northern Spain.
During the Reconquista, the period when Christian kingdoms gradually regained control of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors, the surname Aja spread to other parts of Spain. In the 12th century, there are records of a knight named Rodrigo Aja who fought alongside King Alfonso VIII of Castile in the Battle of Las Navas de Tolosa.
In the 16th century, the surname Aja was also found in the Americas, as Spanish conquistadors and settlers brought their names to the New World. One of the earliest recorded examples is Juan de Aja, a soldier who participated in the conquest of Mexico under Hernán Cortés in the 1520s.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Aja. One of the most famous was Pedro Aja y Riquer, a Spanish painter and engraver who lived in the 18th century (1676-1738). He is known for his works depicting religious and historical scenes.
Another prominent figure was José Aja Ésquivel, a Mexican writer and journalist from the 19th century (1834-1886). He was a staunch defender of liberal and republican ideals and played an important role in the Reform War in Mexico.
In the 20th century, one of the most notable individuals with the surname Aja was the American musician and composer Steely Dan, whose real name was Walter Aja (1949-2020). He was renowned for his distinctive jazz-rock style and was a key member of the renowned band.
Other notable individuals with the surname Aja include Fernando Aja Díaz, a Spanish politician who served as the Minister of Agriculture, Fisheries, and Food from 2004 to 2008, and Lidia Aja, a Cuban-American artist known for her abstract expressionist paintings.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Aja
Among Census respondents with the surname Aja, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 59.2%. The next largest groups are White (31.0%) and Black (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Aja 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 Aja surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino59.2% · 294
- White31.0% · 154
- Black or African American6.4% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.6% · 8
- Two or more races1.2% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Aja
Aja 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
#44,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 488
+38 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Up 786 places
2020
#46,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 497
+9 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 2,144 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #44,895 | 450 | 0.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #44,109 | 488 | 0.17 | +38 bearers (+8.4%) | Up 786 places |
| 2020 | #46,253 | 497 | 0.17 | +9 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 2,144 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 Aja 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 | #44,109 | #46,253 | -4.9% |
| Count | 488 | 497 | 1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.17 | 0.17 | -2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Aja bearers went from 488 to 497 (+1.8% change). The surname moved down 2,144 positions in the national ranking, going from #44,109 to #46,253.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Aja
FAQ
Aja surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Aja?
Name Census estimates that about 570 living Americans carry the surname Aja. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 601,323 residents.
How common is Aja?
Aja ranks #46,253 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.17 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 497 people with the surname Aja. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (570), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.17 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.17 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 Aja.
Has Aja become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Aja went from 488 recorded bearers to 497. That is an increase of 9 (+1.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #44,109 to #46,253.
What does the Census say about the background of Aja?
Among Census respondents with the surname Aja, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 59.2%. The next largest groups are White (31.0%) and Black (6.4%). 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 Aja in the 2020 Census, accounting for 59.2% (294 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Aja appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (59.2%), White (31.0%), Black (6.4%). 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 Aja (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 Aja mean?
A Yoruba name meaning "born face down" or "one who is born with the face downwards." 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 Aja (0.17 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 Aja?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.