2000
#1,061
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 30,141
First available Census row
Per 100,000 11.17
Uncommon Last name
Cortes
A Spanish surname derived from the word "corte," meaning "court," likely referring to someone who worked at a royal court.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 56,970 Americans carry the last name Cortes. That puts it at #668 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 16.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 6,016 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cortes 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Cortes with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
57K
1 in 6,016
Census rank
#668
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
16.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
50K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 49,681 bearers of the surname Cortes in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 16.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 668th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cortes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cortes
The surname Cortes is of Spanish origin, deriving from the medieval Spanish word "corte," meaning "court" or "royal residence." The name likely originated in the 12th or 13th century, during the era of the Reconquista, when Spanish nobles and courtiers were granted lands and titles by the monarchs they served.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Cortes name can be found in the Libro de las Behetrias, a 14th-century document that cataloged the lands and privileges held by the nobility in the Kingdom of Castile. The document mentions individuals bearing the name Cortes, indicating their status as courtiers or royal officials.
The Cortes surname is also closely associated with the famous Spanish conquistador Hernán Cortés (1485-1547), who led the conquest of the Aztec Empire in present-day Mexico. His exploits and conquest of Tenochtitlán (modern-day Mexico City) are well-documented in historical accounts and have cemented his place in history as one of the most significant figures of the Spanish colonization of the Americas.
Another notable historical figure with the Cortes surname was Martín Cortés (1532-1589), the son of Hernán Cortés and his interpreter and mistress, Malinche. Martín Cortés served as a Spanish military officer and played a crucial role in the conquest and colonization of the Philippines.
In the realm of literature, the Spanish Golden Age playwright Lope de Vega (1562-1635) wrote a play titled "El Nuevo Mundo Descubierto por Cristóbal Colón" (The New World Discovered by Christopher Columbus), which features a character named Hernán Cortés and depicts his conquest of Mexico.
The Cortes surname can also be found in the historical records of other Spanish-speaking regions, such as the Philippines, where it was introduced during the Spanish colonial era. One notable figure was Juan Cortés y Olarte (1568-1626), a Spanish Jesuit missionary and linguist who authored one of the earliest dictionaries of the Tagalog language.
While the Cortes name is primarily associated with Spain and its former colonies, it has also spread to other parts of the world through migration and intermarriage. Regardless of its geographic location, the surname Cortes continues to carry a rich historical legacy, rooted in the courtly traditions and colonial explorations of the Spanish Empire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cortes
Among Census respondents with the surname Cortes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Cortes 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 Cortes surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino92.2% · 45,809
- White4.7% · 2,333
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.1% · 1,041
- Black or African American0.4% · 219
- Two or more races0.4% · 193
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 86
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cortes
Cortes 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
#751
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 46,229
+16,088 bearers (+53.4%)
Per 100,000 15.67
Rank movement Up 310 places
2020
#668
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 49,681
+3,452 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 16.62
Rank movement Up 83 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,061 | 30,141 | 11.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #751 | 46,229 | 15.67 | +16,088 bearers (+53.4%) | Up 310 places |
| 2020 | #668 | 49,681 | 16.62 | +3,452 bearers (+7.5%) | Up 83 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 Cortes 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 | #751 | #668 | 11.1% |
| Count | 46,229 | 49,681 | 7.5% |
| Per 100K | 15.67 | 16.62 | 6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cortes bearers went from 46,229 to 49,681 (+7.5% change). The surname moved up 83 positions in the national ranking, going from #751 to #668.
FAQ
Cortes surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cortes?
Name Census estimates that about 56,970 living Americans carry the surname Cortes. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 6,016 residents.
How common is Cortes?
Cortes ranks #668 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 16.62 per 100,000 residents, which is about 17 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 49,681 people with the surname Cortes. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (56,970), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 16.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 16.62 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 17 of them to have the surname Cortes.
Has Cortes become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cortes went from 46,229 recorded bearers to 49,681. That is an increase of 3,452 (+7.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #751 to #668.
What does the Census say about the background of Cortes?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cortes, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 92.2%. The next largest groups are White (4.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%). 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 Cortes in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (45,809 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cortes appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (92.2%), White (4.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.1%). 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 Cortes (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 Cortes mean?
A Spanish surname derived from the word "corte," meaning "court," likely referring to someone who worked at a royal court. 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 Cortes (16.62 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 surname Cortes?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.