Alves
A Portuguese surname derived from the Latin name 'Alvidius'.
Name Census estimates that about 0 living Americans carry the first name Alves. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Alves today is around 0 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Alves births was 1920 (5 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Alves. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Alves. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
0
~ - Americans
Peak year
1920
5 babies that year
Average age
-
1920 SSA rank
#4,307
Tracked since 1920
Popularity
Alves: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Alves by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Alves during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1920s | 5 | 0 | 5 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Alves
The name Alves originates from the Portuguese and Spanish languages, derived from the Latin name Albus, meaning "white" or "bright." This name has its roots in the Iberian Peninsula, dating back to the Middle Ages.
The earliest recorded use of the name Alves can be traced back to the 12th century in Portugal and Spain. It was commonly used as a surname, indicating a family's connection to a person with fair or bright features. Over time, it transitioned into a given name as well.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Alves de Moura was a prominent Portuguese nobleman and military leader during the Christian Reconquista against the Moors. He played a significant role in the conquest of the Algarve region.
During the Renaissance period, Alves de Coimbra was a renowned Portuguese scholar and mathematician who contributed to the advancement of navigation techniques, aiding the era's explorations.
In the 17th century, Alves de Faria was a Spanish playwright and poet, known for his works that explored themes of love and honor. His plays were widely performed in Spain and its colonies.
Moving into the 19th century, Alves de Azevedo was a celebrated Brazilian Romantic poet and writer, regarded as one of the leading figures of the Romantic movement in Brazilian literature. He was born in 1833 and died at a young age in 1852.
In the 20th century, Alves Redol was a prominent Portuguese writer and novelist, known for his realistic depictions of rural life and social issues in Portugal. He was born in 1911 and passed away in 1967.
These are just a few examples of the historical figures who have carried the name Alves, which has endured through the centuries, maintaining its Portuguese and Spanish roots while transcending cultural boundaries.
People
Alves + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Alves as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with A
Other first names starting with A with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Alves: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Alves?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 0 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Alves going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about - US residents.
Is Alves a common name?
We classify Alves as "Very Rare". It ranks above 2.9% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 5 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Alves most popular?
The single biggest year for Alves was 1920, when 5 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Alves is about 0 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Alves in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Alves a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Alves in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Alves still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Alves in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Alves can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How common is the name Alves?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans are named Alves at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.