2000
#59
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 299,463
First available Census row
Per 100,000 111.01
Common Last name
Rivera
A Spanish habitational surname indicating someone from a place near a riverbank or shore.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 456,912 Americans carry the last name Rivera. That puts it at #46 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 133.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 750 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rivera 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 Rivera with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
457K
1 in 750
Census rank
#46
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
133.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
398K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 398,449 bearers of the surname Rivera in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 133.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 46th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rivera, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rivera
The surname Rivera has its origins in Spain, stemming from the Spanish word "ribera," which means "riverbank" or "shore." It first emerged in the regions of Castile and Aragon during the medieval period, likely referring to individuals who lived near a river or along the banks of a river.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Rivera can be found in the "Libro de la Montería" (Book of the Hunt), a 14th-century manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile, which mentions several individuals with the surname.
The name Rivera is also found in historical documents from the 15th and 16th centuries, such as the "Repartimiento de Sevilla" (Distribution of Seville), a record of land grants made to settlers after the Reconquista of the city in 1248. This suggests that the surname was well-established in Spain during the Middle Ages.
Among the notable individuals with the surname Rivera throughout history are Diego Rivera (1886-1957), a renowned Mexican painter and a leading figure in the Mexican Muralism movement, and Anita Rivera (1924-2022), an American actress and dancer who was one of the last surviving Golden Age of Mexican cinema stars.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Fray Peyró Martínez de Rivera (1453-1521), a Spanish friar and diplomat who served as the ambassador of the Catholic Monarchs to the Ottoman Empire in the early 16th century.
In the literary world, José Eustasio Rivera (1888-1928) was a Colombian novelist and poet, best known for his novel "La Vorágine" (The Vortex), considered a classic of Latin American literature.
The surname Rivera can also be found in other Spanish-speaking countries, such as Mexico, where it is one of the most common surnames, likely due to the large Spanish influence during the colonial period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rivera
Among Census respondents with the surname Rivera, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Rivera 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 Rivera surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino90.2% · 359,297
- White5.8% · 22,959
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.3% · 9,026
- Black or African American1.1% · 4,221
- Two or more races0.5% · 2,135
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 811
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rivera
Rivera 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
#46
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 391,114
+91,651 bearers (+30.6%)
Per 100,000 132.59
Rank movement Up 13 places
2020
#46
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 398,449
+7,335 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 133.31
Rank movement No rank change
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #59 | 299,463 | 111.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #46 | 391,114 | 132.59 | +91,651 bearers (+30.6%) | Up 13 places |
| 2020 | #46 | 398,449 | 133.31 | +7,335 bearers (+1.9%) | No rank change |
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 Rivera 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 | #46 | #46 | 0.0% |
| Count | 391,114 | 398,449 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 132.59 | 133.31 | 0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rivera bearers went from 391,114 to 398,449 (+1.9% change). The surname held its position in the national ranking, remaining at #46.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rivera
FAQ
Rivera surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rivera?
Name Census estimates that about 456,912 living Americans carry the surname Rivera. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 750 residents.
How common is Rivera?
Rivera ranks #46 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 133.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 133 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 398,449 people with the surname Rivera. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (456,912), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 133.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 133.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 133 of them to have the surname Rivera.
Has Rivera become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rivera went from 391,114 recorded bearers to 398,449. That is an increase of 7,335 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it stayed at #46.
What does the Census say about the background of Rivera?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rivera, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 90.2%. The next largest groups are White (5.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.3%). 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 Rivera in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.2% (359,297 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rivera appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (90.2%), White (5.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.3%). 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 Rivera (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 Rivera mean?
A Spanish habitational surname indicating someone from a place near a riverbank or shore. 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 Rivera (133.31 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 Rivera?
Find out how many people are called Rivera on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.