The Real surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 6,959 people carried this name — #5,045 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 42,400 people counted. That is up 23% from 5,654 in 2000.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 3,197 people named Real live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 953 people named Real.
99 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 61 départements, most often Nord.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
106 people named Real live in Switzerland.
They live in 10 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 21 people named Real live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Hainaut.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
Who carried it
People named Real,
with a public archive behind them.
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Enrique Real Magdaleno 1860–1930 · writer -
Sergio Real Hernández 1868–1933 · miller -
Romualdo Real d. 1890 · politician
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Herman G. Real d. 1991 · entomologist
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Franz Anton Real 1816–1878 · judge
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Marie Magdeleine Real del Sarte 1853–1927 · painter
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Real.
When the index is not enough
This page says where Real is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.