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

Calvo, 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 Calvo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Calvo in America

Calvo is the 5086th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Calvo surname appeared 6,883 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 Calvo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Calvo 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 Calvo

The surname Calvo originates from Spain and Italy, deriving from the Late Latin word "calvus" meaning bald or hairless. It likely originated as a nickname for someone who was bald or had thinning hair.

The earliest recorded use of the surname Calvo dates back to the 10th century in various regions of Spain and Italy. Some of the earliest records include mentions in the Catalan grand cartulary of the 11th century and the Codice diplomatico della Lombardia medievale from the late 10th century in Italy.

In Spain, the surname Calvo can be traced back to the medieval Kingdom of Aragon, where it appeared in records from places like Zaragoza and Teruel. It was also present in other regions like Andalusia and Castile during this time period. One notable early bearer of the name was Pedro Calvo, a 13th-century nobleman from Aragon who served as a royal adviser to King James I of Aragon.

In Italy, the surname Calvo was particularly prominent in the regions of Lombardy and Piedmont. An early recorded instance is that of Guglielmo Calvo, a 12th-century nobleman from Piedmont who served as a diplomat for the Holy Roman Empire.

Other notable historical figures with the surname Calvo include Francisco Calvo, a 16th-century Spanish explorer and conquistador who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés. Another prominent individual was Andrea Calvo, a 17th-century Italian architect and sculptor who designed several churches and palaces in Turin and Genoa.

The surname Calvo has also been present in various other European countries over the centuries, likely due to migration and intermarriage. For example, there are records of the name in France dating back to the 13th century, with individuals like Étienne Calvo, a 14th-century merchant from Marseille.

While the surname Calvo originated as a nickname for someone with thinning hair or baldness, it eventually became a hereditary surname passed down through generations in many families across Europe, particularly in Spain and Italy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Calvo

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

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

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

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