Explore the Family Name Portales

The meaning of Portales

Spanish, Galician, and Portuguese: from the plural of portal ‘gate’ (see Portal), either as a topographic name or a habitational name from a place called Portales. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Carlos, Amando, Sergio, Alfredo, Andres, Arturo, Efrain, Feliberto, Juan, Lourdes, Mario, Rafael.

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

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

Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname Portales in the United States has been steadily increasing. In 2000, Portales ranked as the 20,831st most common surname, but by 2010 it had climbed to the 17,752nd spot, an increase of 14.78%. The total count of individuals with the surname also grew significantly during this period, rising from 1,178 in 2000 to 1,578 in 2010, a sizeable uptick of 33.96%. The proportion of the name per 100,000 individuals also increased by 20.45%, moving from 0.44 to 0.53.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#20,831	#17,752	14.78%
Count	1,178	1,578	33.96%
Proportion per 100k	0.44	0.53	20.45%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Portales

On the other hand, when considering ethnicity, according to the Decennial U.S. Census, there was little change in the ethnic identity breakdown of those bearing the surname. Predominantly, individuals identified as Hispanic, making up 95.16% in 2000 and slightly decreasing to 93.85% by 2010. The proportion identifying as White saw a small increase, growing by 15.29% from 4.84% in 2000 to 5.58% in 2010. No individuals reported identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, Black, or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either 2000 or 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Hispanic	95.16%	93.85%	-1.38%
White	4.84%	5.58%	15.29%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
Two or More Races	0%	0%	0%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%