Explore the Family Name Cal

The meaning of Cal

1. Galician: habitational name from any of numerous places called Cal in Galicia (Spain), named with a word meaning ‘limestone’ (from Latin calx). 2. Spanish: variant of Calle. 3. Portuguese: shortened form of Canal. 4. Amerindian (Guatemala): Mayan name of unexplained etymology. Compare Caal. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Osvaldo, Benito, Enrique, Genaro, Jose, Luis, Mario, Ruben, Santiago.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Cal in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname 'Cal' has risen over time. In 2000, it ranked 41,793 out of all U.S. surnames - a ranking that improved to 35,489 in 2010, marking an increase of 15.08%. The number of individuals with the Cal surname also grew from 490 in 2000 to 634 in 2010, showing a substantial 29.39% increase. The proportion of people named Cal per 100,000 also saw a growth of 16.67% during this period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#41,793	#35,489	15.08%
Count	490	634	29.39%
Proportion per 100k	0.18	0.21	16.67%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Cal

The ethnic identity associated with the surname 'Cal' has seen noticeable shifts as well. Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the percentage of individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander decreased by 38.02% between 2000 and 2010. Meanwhile, the Hispanic population with the Cal surname increased by 64.30%. There was a slight increase in the percentage of White individuals, up by 6.26%, while the Black population decreased by 12.65%. No change was recorded for those identifying as belonging to two or more races, or as American Indian and Alaskan Native.

	2000	2010	Change
Black	36.12%	31.55%	-12.65%
Hispanic	17.76%	29.18%	64.3%
White	22.86%	24.29%	6.26%
Asian/Pacific Islander	18.57%	11.51%	-38.02%
Two or More Races	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%