2000
#99,214
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 169
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Fea
An English surname derived from the Old French word "fée" meaning "fairy."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 203 Americans carry the last name Fea. That puts it at #107,024 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,688,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fea 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
203
1 in 1,688,445
Census rank
#107,024
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
177
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 177 bearers of the surname Fea in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 107024th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fea, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.0%) and Hispanic (8.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fea
The surname FEA originated in Spain during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish word "fe," which means "faith" or "belief." The name may have been given to someone who was particularly religious or devout.
In the 13th century, the name appears in various Spanish records and manuscripts, particularly in the regions of Catalonia and Aragon. One of the earliest documented instances is a mention of a certain Rodrigo de Fea in a land grant from the year 1265.
The name FEA is also thought to be connected to the town of Fea, located in the province of Alicante, Spain. This town name likely originated from the Latin word "fidelis," meaning "faithful" or "loyal." It is possible that some early bearers of the surname FEA may have hailed from this town or had some association with it.
One notable individual with the surname FEA was Francisco de Fea y Calderón, a Spanish military officer and colonial administrator who lived from 1695 to 1768. He served as the Governor of Havana, Cuba, from 1737 to 1746, and played a significant role in the defense of the city against the British during the War of Jenkins' Ear.
Another notable bearer of the name was Jerónimo de Fea, a Spanish soldier and explorer who lived in the late 16th century. He is known for his expeditions to the Río de la Plata region of South America and his contributions to the exploration and mapping of the area.
In the 17th century, the surname FEA also appears in records from the Spanish colonies in the Americas. For instance, there is mention of a Diego de Fea who was a landowner in Mexico City in the mid-1600s.
By the 18th century, the name had spread to other regions of Spain, including Andalusia and the Canary Islands. One prominent individual from this period was José de Fea y Ramírez, a Spanish naval officer and explorer who led several expeditions to the Pacific Ocean in the late 1700s.
Throughout its history, the surname FEA has also been associated with various place names and local variations in spelling, such as Feas, Feaz, and Feaz de Riguros, among others.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fea
Among Census respondents with the surname Fea, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.0%) and Hispanic (8.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Fea 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 Fea surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.0% · 131
- Asian and Pacific Islander13.0% · 23
- Hispanic or Latino8.5% · 15
- Two or more races2.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fea
Fea 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
#92,358
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 199
+30 bearers (+17.8%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 6,856 places
2020
#107,024
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 177
-22 bearers (-11.1%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 14,666 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #99,214 | 169 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #92,358 | 199 | 0.07 | +30 bearers (+17.8%) | Up 6,856 places |
| 2020 | #107,024 | 177 | 0.06 | -22 bearers (-11.1%) | Down 14,666 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 Fea 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 | #92,358 | #107,024 | -15.9% |
| Count | 199 | 177 | -11.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.06 | -15.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fea bearers went from 199 to 177 (-11.1% change). The surname moved down 14,666 positions in the national ranking, going from #92,358 to #107,024.
FAQ
Fea surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fea?
Name Census estimates that about 203 living Americans carry the surname Fea. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,688,445 residents.
How common is Fea?
Fea ranks #107,024 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 177 people with the surname Fea. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (203), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Fea.
Has Fea become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fea went from 199 recorded bearers to 177. That is a decrease of 22 (-11.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #92,358 to #107,024.
What does the Census say about the background of Fea?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fea, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (13.0%) and Hispanic (8.5%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Fea in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.0% (131 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fea appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (13.0%), Hispanic (8.5%). 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 Fea (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 Fea mean?
An English surname derived from the Old French word "fée" meaning "fairy." 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 Fea (0.06 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 Fea?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.