Explore the Family Name Valcarcel

The meaning of Valcarcel

Spanish, Galician, and Asturian-Leonese (Valcárcel): habitational name from any of the places in La Rioja province, Galicia, and Asturias, called Valcárcel, named in Galician or Old Spanish with val ‘valley’ + cárcel ‘prison’ (from Latin carcer), the second element being used in the transferred sense of a confined space, i.e. a narrow gorge. Some characteristic forenames: Spanish Jorge, Jose, Luis, Manuel, Aurelio, Carlos, Mario, Pedro, Aida, Alfonso, Consuelo, Emilio.

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

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

According to the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Valcarcel has seen a marked increase in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. The ranking of the surname rose from 29,040 to 25,889, indicating a substantial rise of approximately 10.85%. Moreover, there was an appreciable count increase from 769 to 950, which represents a 23.54% growth. This trend is further highlighted by the proportion per 100k figure, where it also experienced a growth of 10.34%.

20002010Change
Rank#29,040#25,88910.85%
Count76995023.54%
Proportion per 100k0.290.3210.34%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Valcarcel

In terms of ethnic identity distribution for the Valcarcel surname, the Decennial U.S. Census data indicates several shifts between 2000 and 2010. The percentage identifying as Hispanic saw a slight increase, going from 80.75% to 83.37%. There was a significant surge in those identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander, rising from 1.43% to 3.16%, registering a change of 120.98%. Meanwhile, there was a slight increase in those identifying as Black, from 1.69% to 2.00%. However, the percentage of individuals with this surname identifying as White decreased from 15.08% to 10.95%. Data for those identifying as two or more races or American Indian and Alaskan Native were suppressed for privacy.

20002010Change
Hispanic80.75%83.37%3.24%
White15.08%10.95%-27.39%
Asian/Pacific Islander1.43%3.16%120.98%
Black1.69%2%18.34%
Two or More Races0%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%