2000
#8,115
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,765
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.40
Rare Last name
Alvis
Derived from the Old Norse name "Álvíss," meaning "all-wise" or "very wise," and later adopted as a surname.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,081 Americans carry the last name Alvis. That puts it at #8,836 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,988 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alvis surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Alvis with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 83,988
Census rank
#8,836
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,559 bearers of the surname Alvis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8836th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alvis
The surname Alvis has its origins in England, with the earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Old English given name "Alfwine," which is a combination of the elements "ælf" meaning "elf" and "wine" meaning "friend."
The surname Alvis was first found in Northamptonshire, where the family held a seat from ancient times. One of the earliest recorded bearers was William Alwyne, who was documented in the Hundredorum Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1279.
In the 14th century, the Alvis surname appeared in various forms, including Alvys, Alveys, and Alwys, reflecting the variations in spelling common during that time. The name is also found in several early records, such as the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex in 1327, where a Thomas Alwys is mentioned.
The Alvis family continued to thrive in various parts of England, with notable bearers including John Alvis, who was born in 1587 in Taunton, Somerset, and Sir John Alvis, a prominent merchant and member of the Worshipful Company of Mercers in London during the 17th century.
Another notable individual with the Alvis surname was Thomas Alvis, a philosopher and theologian born in 1621 in Leicestershire. He was educated at Oxford University and later became a fellow of Trinity College, Cambridge.
In the 18th century, the Alvis family had established themselves in various parts of England, with records showing bearers in counties such as Northamptonshire, Warwickshire, and Worcestershire. One notable figure from this period was William Alvis, a writer and poet born in 1745 in Somerset.
The 19th century saw the rise of the Alvis automobile company, founded by Thomas George John Alvis in 1919 in Coventry, England. The company gained renown for producing high-quality sports cars and luxury vehicles until its closure in the 1960s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alvis
Among Census respondents with the surname Alvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Alvis bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Alvis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White79.5% · 2,828
- Black or African American8.1% · 289
- Hispanic or Latino7.2% · 258
- Two or more races3.9% · 139
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 35
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alvis
Alvis appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#8,404
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,936
+171 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 1.33
Rank movement Down 289 places
2020
#8,836
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,559
-377 bearers (-9.6%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Down 432 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,115 | 3,765 | 1.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,404 | 3,936 | 1.33 | +171 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 289 places |
| 2020 | #8,836 | 3,559 | 1.19 | -377 bearers (-9.6%) | Down 432 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Alvis surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #8,404 | #8,836 | -5.1% |
| Count | 3,936 | 3,559 | -9.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.33 | 1.19 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alvis bearers went from 3,936 to 3,559 (-9.6% change). The surname moved down 432 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,404 to #8,836.
FAQ
Alvis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alvis?
Name Census estimates that about 4,081 living Americans carry the surname Alvis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,988 residents.
How common is Alvis?
Alvis ranks #8,836 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,559 people with the surname Alvis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,081), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Alvis.
Has Alvis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alvis went from 3,936 recorded bearers to 3,559. That is a decrease of 377 (-9.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,404 to #8,836.
What does the Census say about the background of Alvis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 79.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.1%) and Hispanic (7.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Alvis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 79.5% (2,828 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alvis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (79.5%), Black (8.1%), Hispanic (7.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Alvis (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Alvis mean?
Derived from the Old Norse name "Álvíss," meaning "all-wise" or "very wise," and later adopted as a surname. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Alvis (1.19 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people have the last name Alvis?
See how many people are called Alvis on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.