2000
#4,467
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,303
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.71
Uncommon Last name
Teixeira
A Portuguese occupational surname referring to a weaver or textile worker.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 11,009 Americans carry the last name Teixeira. That puts it at #3,614 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,134 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Teixeira 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 Teixeira with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 31,134
Census rank
#3,614
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.6K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,600 bearers of the surname Teixeira in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3614th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Teixeira, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.9%. The next largest groups are Black (13.1%) and Hispanic (8.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Teixeira
The surname Teixeira originates from Portugal and dates back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Portuguese word "teixo", meaning yew tree, and likely referred to someone who lived near a yew tree or grove of yew trees. The earliest recorded spelling was "Teixeira" in reference to a place name.
One of the earliest known references to the name Teixeira can be found in a manuscript from the 13th century, which mentions a person named Joao Teixeira, a landowner in the region of Minho, Portugal. The name Teixeira is also associated with several prominent Portuguese families from the Middle Ages, including the Teixeiras of Coimbra and the Teixeiras of Porto.
In the 15th century, a man named Nuno Teixeira (1454-1516) served as a navigator and explorer for the Portuguese Crown, participating in several voyages to West Africa and India. He is considered one of the early pioneers of Portuguese exploration and colonization.
Another notable figure with the surname Teixeira was Pedro Teixeira (1570-1650), a Portuguese explorer who led an expedition from Quito, Ecuador, to the Amazon River in 1637-1639. His detailed account of this journey, known as the "Relación del Descubrimiento del Río de las Amazonas", provided valuable information about the region and its indigenous peoples.
In the 17th century, Antonio Teixeira (1633-1701) was a prominent Portuguese architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings and fortifications in Portugal and its colonies, including the Convent of Santa Clara in Vila do Conde and the Fortress of Sagres in the Algarve.
During the 18th century, Jose Teixeira de Faria (1688-1759) was a renowned Portuguese mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the fields of astronomy and navigation. He served as the director of the Royal Observatory in Lisbon and published several works on celestial mechanics and the calculation of nautical tables.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname Teixeira, which has its roots in the rich cultural heritage of Portugal and its exploration and colonization efforts around the world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Teixeira
Among Census respondents with the surname Teixeira, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.9%. The next largest groups are Black (13.1%) and Hispanic (8.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Teixeira 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 Teixeira surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.9% · 6,810
- Black or African American13.1% · 1,256
- Hispanic or Latino8.5% · 818
- Two or more races5.0% · 481
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.2% · 210
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 25
Timeline
Historical Census data for Teixeira
Teixeira 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
#3,994
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,895
+1,592 bearers (+21.8%)
Per 100,000 3.02
Rank movement Up 473 places
2020
#3,614
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,600
+705 bearers (+7.9%)
Per 100,000 3.21
Rank movement Up 380 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,467 | 7,303 | 2.71 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,994 | 8,895 | 3.02 | +1,592 bearers (+21.8%) | Up 473 places |
| 2020 | #3,614 | 9,600 | 3.21 | +705 bearers (+7.9%) | Up 380 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 Teixeira 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 | #3,994 | #3,614 | 9.5% |
| Count | 8,895 | 9,600 | 7.9% |
| Per 100K | 3.02 | 3.21 | 6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Teixeira bearers went from 8,895 to 9,600 (+7.9% change). The surname moved up 380 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,994 to #3,614.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Teixeira
FAQ
Teixeira surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Teixeira?
Name Census estimates that about 11,009 living Americans carry the surname Teixeira. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,134 residents.
How common is Teixeira?
Teixeira ranks #3,614 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.21 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,600 people with the surname Teixeira. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (11,009), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.21 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Teixeira.
Has Teixeira become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Teixeira went from 8,895 recorded bearers to 9,600. That is an increase of 705 (+7.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,994 to #3,614.
What does the Census say about the background of Teixeira?
Among Census respondents with the surname Teixeira, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.9%. The next largest groups are Black (13.1%) 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 Teixeira in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.9% (6,810 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Teixeira appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.9%), Black (13.1%), 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 Teixeira (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 Teixeira mean?
A Portuguese occupational surname referring to a weaver or textile worker. 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 Teixeira (3.21 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 last name Teixeira?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Teixeira is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.