Explore the Family Name Palos

The meaning of Palos

1. Spanish: habitational name from Palos de la Frontera, the port in Huelva from which it is said Columbus’ ships set sail. 2. Hungarian (Pálos): from the personal name Pál, Hungarian form of Paul. The surname Pálos is also found in Slovakia. 3. Croatian (Paloš): from a derivative of the Hungarian form of the personal name Paul (see 2 above), or from paloš, a word of Hungarian and ultimately of Turkish origin, denoting a kind of sabre. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Jesus, Manuel, Juan, Humberto, Jose, Agustin, Carlos, Felipe, Francisco, Homero, Miguel Angel, Salvador.

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

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

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Palos has shown an increase in popularity between 2000 to 2010. The rank of the surname rose from 11,935th place in 2000 to 11,040th place in 2010, showing a 7.5% increase. The number of individuals carrying the Palos surname also saw a significant rise, with a count of 2,402 in 2000 to 2,880 in 2010, which represents a 19.9% upsurge. There was also a slight increase in the proportion of the name per 100k people, going from 0.89 to 0.98 over the decade.

20002010Change
Rank#11,935#11,0407.5%
Count2,4022,88019.9%
Proportion per 100k0.890.9810.11%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Palos

The ethnic identity associated with the Palos surname, as per the Decennial U.S. Census data, shows interesting changes between 2000 and 2010. The largest group remains those identifying as Hispanic, which saw a growth of 8.41%, increasing from 80.52% to 87.29%. However, the number of individuals identifying their ethnicity as White showed a significant decrease of 36.87%, falling from 15.57% to 9.83%. Those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander and Two or more races also decreased by 23.65% and 20.65% respectively. No individuals identified as Black or American Indian and Alaskan Native in 2010, while a small percentage did in 2000.

20002010Change
Hispanic80.52%87.29%8.41%
White15.57%9.83%-36.87%
Asian/Pacific Islander2.41%1.84%-23.65%
Two or More Races0.92%0.73%-20.65%
Black0.29%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0.29%0%0%