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

Alves, 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 Alves surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alves in America

Alves is the 2595th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alves surname appeared 13,882 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Alves.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alves 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 Alves

The surname Alves is of Portuguese origin and can be traced back to the late 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the ancient given name "Alvo," which means "white" or "fair" in Portuguese. The name was likely used as a nickname or descriptive term for someone with light-colored hair or a fair complexion.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Alves can be found in the "Inquirições de D. Afonso III" (Inquiries of King Afonso III), a medieval document from the 13th century that compiled information about land ownership and populations in various regions of Portugal. In this document, the name appears as "Alvus" and "Alviz," which were early variations of the modern spelling.

The Alves surname is particularly prominent in the regions of Minho and Trás-os-Montes in northern Portugal, where it is believed to have originated. It is also found in other areas of Portugal, as well as in former Portuguese colonies such as Brazil and Angola.

One notable historical figure with the surname Alves was Gonçalo Alves, a 15th-century Portuguese explorer who accompanied Vasco da Gama on his voyage to India in 1498. Another prominent individual was Tomé Alves, a 16th-century Portuguese merchant and writer who authored one of the earliest accounts of life in Brazil.

In the 17th century, the name Alves appeared in various manuscripts and records, including the "Livro de Linhagens" (Book of Lineages), a compilation of Portuguese noble families. One such individual mentioned is João Alves, a nobleman who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries.

In the 18th century, José Alves Macamboa was a notable figure from Angola who played a significant role in the resistance against Portuguese colonialism. Another prominent individual was Manuel Alves Vilhegas, a Portuguese military officer and colonial administrator who served in Brazil and Angola in the late 18th century.

Moving into the 19th century, Joaquim Alves de Sousa was a Brazilian writer and journalist who contributed to the country's literary and cultural development. Additionally, José Alves Correia da Silva was a Portuguese politician and jurist who served as the Minister of Justice and Religious Affairs in the late 19th century.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alves

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

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

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

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