These are the most common Mexican last names beginning with I, ranked by how many people in Mexico bear them today.
These rankings come from a database of over 1.25 million workers published by Mexico’s Ministry of Public Education.
Ibarra heads the list at 71st in the country. It’s a Basque name, like several others on this page.
But this list has more indigenous surnames than most letters. These are Maya and Nahuatl names that predate the conquest. I’ll highlight some in the sections below.
List Of Mexican Last Names Starting With I
Let’s start with the alphabetical list of names from Ibañez to Icedo.
The name “Ic” is notable in this section as being one of the few two-letter surnames in Mexico. It’s a Mayan name, with the word referring to a chilli pepper.
Ibarra is the only surname starting with I that falls in the top one hundred in Mexico. It ranks #71. The origins are in the Basque region. The Basque ibar refers to a meadow, or lowlands by a river.
| Last Name | Mexico Rank | U.S. Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Ibañez | 761 | 4,121 |
| Ibares | 4,523 | |
| Ibarez | 4,098 | |
| Ibarguen | 4,523 | 74,375 |
| Ibarias | 3,917 | |
| Ibarra | 71 | 507 |
| Ibarria | 2,458 | 77,264 |
| Ic | 2,725 | |
| Icedo | 4,802 | 160,975 |
| Ichin | 3,485 |
Mexican Names from Iglecias to Iniestra
Two surnames in this section fall within the top one thousand in Mexico. Infante is the more common.
The meaning comes from the Spanish for a small child. The original Latin infans means “one who can’t speak”. Historically, the name was conferred on children in a royal household.
| Last Name | Mexico Rank | U.S. Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Iglecias | 3,917 | 124,548 |
| Iglesias | 872 | 3,387 |
| Ildefonso | 2,793 | 35,812 |
| Ilescas | 4,802 | |
| Ilhuicatzi | 3,762 | |
| Ilizaliturri | 4,802 | |
| Illan | 4,802 | 160,975 |
| Illescas | 1,542 | 22,573 |
| Inclan | 2,369 | 33,450 |
| Inda | 1,752 | 23,019 |
| Infante | 669 | 3,252 |
| Infanzon | 3,917 | 108,199 |
| Iniesta | 2,725 | |
| Iniestra | 2,553 | 88,020 |
Mexican Names from Iñiguez to Iruegas
None of the names in this section are common, all being outside the top one thousand surnames in Mexico.
Intzin is an indigenous Mayan name, specifically of the Tzeltal people.
Interian is the highest ranking name in this section, and it is of Spanish origins. It is a variant of Interiano which is also in this list but less frequent. The meaning comes from the Spanish word for interior, and likely refers to inland areas. This is in contrast to the highlighted name in the next section.
Early bearers likely lived away from coastal areas with no sea in sight.
| Last Name | Mexico Rank | U.S. Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Iñiguez | 1,485 | 4,057 |
| Interian | 1,224 | 60,196 |
| Interiano | 2,793 | 15,434 |
| Intzin | 4,802 | |
| Inurreta | 3,917 | |
| Inzunza | 1,019 | 15,250 |
| Ipatzi | 4,523 | 156,044 |
| Ipiña | 3,357 | 27,481 |
| Iracheta | 1,766 | 21,625 |
| Ireta | 3,059 | 79,846 |
| Iriarte | 2,125 | 25,332 |
| Iribe | 1,999 | 28,704 |
| Irigoyen | 1,677 | 19,456 |
| Irineo | 2,095 | 57,639 |
| Irra | 2,369 | 108,734 |
| Iruegas | 3,762 | 43,151 |
Mexican Names from Isaias to Itza
Itza is an indigenous name. The Itzá were a major Maya people. The name is usually translated as “water sorceror”.
Islas is highest ranked name in this section at position #224. The meaning comes from the Spanish word for an island: isla. Early bearers likely lived on or near an island.
| Last Name | Mexico Rank | U.S. Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Isaias | 3,762 | 75,069 |
| Isais | 3,059 | 23,472 |
| Isidoro | 1,722 | 19,296 |
| Isidro | 726 | 14,127 |
| Isiordia | 2,553 | 59,017 |
| Isla | 4,311 | 36,204 |
| Islas | 224 | 3,853 |
| Ituarte | 4,523 | 70,208 |
| Iturbe | 1,448 | 34,353 |
| Iturbide | 1,360 | 41,426 |
| Iturralde | 2,502 | 24,914 |
| Iturriaga | 2,793 | 52,619 |
| Itza | 1,794 |
Mexican Names from Iuit to Izquierdo
Izquierdo is the highest ranking name in this section. Early bearers were likely left-handed, as this is the Spanish term for it.
Ixmatlahua is indigenous, but not Mayan. This is a Nahuatl name. It is often translated as “knowledgeable one”. It may also refer to people who made traps or nets.
| Last Name | Mexico Rank | U.S. Rank |
|---|---|---|
| Iuit | 3,762 | |
| Ixmatlahua | 2,997 | |
| Ixta | 3,485 | 43,285 |
| Ixtepan | 4,311 | |
| Iza | 4,523 | 76,029 |
| Izabal | 4,802 | |
| Izaguirre | 789 | 5,469 |
| Izquierdo | 704 | 5,791 |
Notes About The List
The data comes from an open database of 1,256,438 federal education workers published by Mexico’s Secretaría de Educación Pública. The processed data is published on GitHub as mexican-names.
The Mexico Rank column shows how common the surname is in Mexico. The lower the number, the more common the name. The U.S. Rank column is the name’s position in the 2010 United States census.
People in Mexico carry two surnames, the father’s followed by the mother’s. Our ranking uses the father’s surname, which is the one a person is normally known by.
Related lists
For surnames common among Hispanic Americans, see our list of Hispanic last names starting with I.
You can also use our surname ranking tool to check how a name ranked in the 2000 and 2010 U.S. censuses.
