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

Alvaro, 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 Alvaro surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alvaro in America

Alvaro is the 21034th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alvaro surname appeared 1,250 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Alvaro.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alvaro 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 Alvaro

The surname Alvaro is of Spanish origin and can be traced back to the early medieval period in the Iberian Peninsula. It is derived from the Visigothic personal name Alvarus, which itself comes from the Germanic root "alf" meaning "elf" or "supernatural being."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Alvaro can be found in the Codex Cavensis, a manuscript dating back to the 9th century, which mentions an individual named Alvarus. The name also appears in various medieval charters and documents from regions like Catalonia, Aragon, and Castile.

In the 11th century, the Domesday Book, a record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror, mentions an individual named Alvredus, which is likely a variant spelling of Alvaro. This suggests that the name may have been introduced to England during the Norman conquest.

Notable historical figures with the surname Alvaro include Álvaro de Luna (1388-1453), a powerful Spanish nobleman and constable of Castile during the reign of King John II. Another prominent individual was Álvaro de Bazán (1526-1588), a Spanish admiral who played a crucial role in the Spanish Armada.

In the literary world, Álvaro Cunqueiro (1911-1981) was a renowned Galician writer and journalist, known for his works that blended fantasy and reality. Álvaro Mutis (1923-2013), a Colombian poet and novelist, is also celebrated for his works such as the "Maqroll" series.

Álvaro Siza Vieira (born 1933) is a renowned Portuguese architect who has left an indelible mark on contemporary architecture with his innovative designs and has received numerous prestigious awards, including the Pritzker Prize in 1992.

It is worth noting that the surname Alvaro has also been associated with various place names throughout Spain and Portugal, such as Alvaro in Ribatejo, Portugal, and Álvaro de Torres in Extremadura, Spain, reflecting the historical presence and distribution of this surname across the Iberian Peninsula.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alvaro

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

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 Alvaro 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 Alvaro 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 Alvaro was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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