Find out how popular the last name Alex is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Alex.

Alex, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Alex surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alex in America

Alex is the 6242nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alex surname appeared 5,476 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Alex.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alex to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Alex

The surname ALEX has its origins in ancient Greece, where it was derived from the Greek name "Alexandros," meaning "defender of men." This name was later adopted by the Romans and became widely used throughout the Roman Empire.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ALEX can be found in the Codex Theodosianus, a collection of imperial decrees from the 4th and 5th centuries AD. This text mentions an individual named Alexius, which is a variant of the name Alexandros.

During the Middle Ages, the name ALEX was commonly found in various European regions, particularly in areas that were once part of the Byzantine Empire or had close ties to Greek culture. For example, the Venetian explorer and merchant Marco Polo (1254-1324) had a relative named Alex who accompanied him on his travels to Asia.

In England, the surname ALEX can be traced back to the Norman Conquest in the 11th century. It is believed that some Norman nobles with Greek or Byzantine roots brought the name to Britain. One notable early bearer of the name was Alexander of Hales (c. 1185-1245), an English philosopher and theologian who was nicknamed "the Ineffable Doctor."

Throughout the centuries, the surname ALEX has been associated with various notable individuals, including:

1. Alexandros Ypsilantis (1792-1828), a Greek revolutionary leader who played a crucial role in the Greek War of Independence against the Ottoman Empire.

2. Alexis de Tocqueville (1805-1859), a French political thinker and historian best known for his influential works, including "Democracy in America."

3. Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918-2008), a Russian novelist, historian, and outspoken critic of the Soviet Union's totalitarian regime, who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1970.

4. Alex Haley (1921-1992), an American writer and author of the groundbreaking novel "Roots: The Saga of an American Family," which explored his African ancestry and the legacy of slavery.

5. Alex Trebek (1940-2020), a Canadian-American television personality best known as the longtime host of the popular game show "Jeopardy!"

While the surname ALEX has undergone various spellings and regional variations over time, its Greek roots and historical significance have remained constant, making it a enduring and notable name across cultures and generations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alex

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Alex.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Alex was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Alex has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Alex was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alex, please contact us.

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