2000
#2,620
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 12,690
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.70
Uncommon Last name
Barrientos
A Spanish habitational surname indicating a person from any of the several places named Barrientos, meaning "muddy places."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 21,443 Americans carry the last name Barrientos. That puts it at #1,882 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.26 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,984 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barrientos 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
21K
1 in 15,984
Census rank
#1,882
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 18,699 bearers of the surname Barrientos in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.26 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1882nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barrientos
The surname Barrientos is of Spanish origin and dates back to the medieval era in Spain. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "barrientos," which means "muddy or clayey areas." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to people who lived in or near areas with a lot of mud or clay.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Barrientos can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries in various regions of Spain, particularly in the areas of Castile and León. In fact, the name appears in some historical documents from that time period, such as the Becerro de las Behetrías, which was a census-like registry of landowners and vassals in Castile.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname Barrientos was Pedro Fernández de Barrientos, a Spanish prelate who lived in the 15th century (c. 1390-1469). He served as the Bishop of Cuenca and later became the Bishop of Segovia. Another prominent figure was Lope de Barrientos (c. 1382-1469), a Spanish Dominican friar, diplomat, and writer who served as the confessor and advisor to King John II of Castile.
During the 15th and 16th centuries, the surname Barrientos was also associated with several noble families in Spain. For instance, the Barrientos-Valderrama family held significant land and influence in the region of Andalusia. Additionally, Juan de Barrientos (c. 1475-1542) was a Spanish humanist scholar and historian who wrote about the history of Spain and the New World.
As Spanish exploration and colonization expanded in the 16th and 17th centuries, the surname Barrientos began to appear in various parts of the Americas and the Philippines. One notable example is Rodrigo de Barrientos, a Spanish explorer and conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru in the 16th century.
Throughout the centuries, the surname Barrientos has undergone various spelling variations, including Barriento, Barrento, and Barrentos. These variations likely emerged due to regional differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions. Additionally, the name has been associated with certain place names in Spain, such as Barrientos de la Arrizafa and Barrientos de las Arrimadas, which may have influenced the development of the surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barrientos
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Barrientos 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 Barrientos surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.4% · 17,276
- White3.8% · 713
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 513
- Two or more races0.5% · 96
- Black or African American0.3% · 51
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 50
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barrientos
Barrientos 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
#1,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,877
+6,187 bearers (+48.8%)
Per 100,000 6.40
Rank movement Up 715 places
2020
#1,882
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 18,699
-178 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 6.26
Rank movement Up 23 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,620 | 12,690 | 4.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,905 | 18,877 | 6.40 | +6,187 bearers (+48.8%) | Up 715 places |
| 2020 | #1,882 | 18,699 | 6.26 | -178 bearers (-0.9%) | Up 23 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 Barrientos 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 | #1,905 | #1,882 | 1.2% |
| Count | 18,877 | 18,699 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 6.40 | 6.26 | -2.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barrientos bearers went from 18,877 to 18,699 (-0.9% change). The surname moved up 23 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,905 to #1,882.
FAQ
Barrientos surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barrientos?
Name Census estimates that about 21,443 living Americans carry the surname Barrientos. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,984 residents.
How common is Barrientos?
Barrientos ranks #1,882 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.26 per 100,000 residents, which is about 6 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 18,699 people with the surname Barrientos. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (21,443), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.26 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.26 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 6 of them to have the surname Barrientos.
Has Barrientos become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barrientos went from 18,877 recorded bearers to 18,699. That is a decrease of 178 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #1,905 to #1,882.
What does the Census say about the background of Barrientos?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrientos, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.4%. The next largest groups are White (3.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Barrientos in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (17,276 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barrientos appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.4%), White (3.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.7%). 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 Barrientos (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 Barrientos mean?
A Spanish habitational surname indicating a person from any of the several places named Barrientos, meaning "muddy places." 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 Barrientos (6.26 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 common is the surname Barrientos?
See how many people have the surname Barrientos on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.