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

Devereaux, 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 Devereaux surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Devereaux in America

Devereaux is the 8383rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Devereaux surname appeared 3,949 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Devereaux.

We can also compare 2010 data for Devereaux 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 Devereaux

The surname Devereaux is of Anglo-Norman origin and dates back to the 11th century. It is derived from the ancient town of Evreux in Normandy, France. The name is a locational surname, which means it was originally given to someone who came from or lived near the town of Evreux.

The name is believed to have been introduced to England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. It was initially spelled as "de Evreux" or "de Evreux-Normandie" to indicate the bearer's place of origin. Over time, it evolved into the more Anglicized form of "Devereaux" or "Devereux."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a comprehensive survey of landholdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as "de Evreux," indicating that the bearer was of Norman descent and hailed from the town of Evreux.

In the 12th century, a notable figure bearing the name was Robert Devereux, who served as the Sheriff of Nottinghamshire in 1155. Another early record is that of Sir Walter Devereux, who accompanied King Richard I on the Third Crusade to the Holy Land in 1191.

The Devereux family gained prominence in the 16th century with Walter Devereux, 1st Earl of Essex (1541-1576), who was a prominent courtier and military leader during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. His son, Robert Devereux, 2nd Earl of Essex (1567-1601), was a favorite of the Queen but later fell out of favor and was executed for treason.

Other notable individuals with the surname Devereux include:

1. Thomas Devereux, 4th Viscount Hereford (1572-1619), an English nobleman and politician.
2. Robert Devereux, 3rd Earl of Essex (1591-1646), an English Civil War leader who fought for the Parliamentarian cause.
3. Walter Devereux, 5th Viscount Hereford (1578-1558), an English soldier and courtier during the reign of King Charles I.
4. Georges Devereux (1908-1985), a French-American ethnologist and psychoanalyst known for his work in cultural anthropology.
5. Anita Devereux (1937-2005), a British writer and artist who authored several books on art and culture.

Throughout history, the Devereaux surname has been associated with prominent figures in various fields, including politics, military, and the arts. Its origins can be traced back to the Norman conquest of England, and it has evolved from its original form to reflect the Anglicization of French surnames.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Devereaux

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!