DeVoe last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of DeVoe

A French toponymic surname derived from a place of origin, possibly meaning "of the valley" or "of the road."

DeVoe, 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 DeVoe surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of DeVoe in America

DeVoe is the 6618th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The DeVoe surname appeared 5,118 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 DeVoe.

We can also compare 2010 data for DeVoe 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 6618 6164 7.10%
Count 5,118 5,118 0.00%
Proportion per 100k 1.74 1.90 -8.79%

The history of the last name DeVoe

The surname DEVOE has its origins in France, with the earliest records dating back to the 11th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old French word "de" meaning "from" and "voie" meaning "way" or "road." This suggests that the name originally referred to someone who lived near a road or pathway.

The name DEVOE is found in various historical records throughout France, including the Domesday Book, which was a survey of landowners commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be "de Voi" in the Domesday Book.

During the Middle Ages, the name DEVOE was particularly prevalent in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in northern France. It is likely that some individuals with this surname migrated to other parts of Europe and beyond during this period.

One notable individual with the surname DEVOE was Jean de Voé, a French soldier and explorer who accompanied Jacques Cartier on his third voyage to Canada in 1541. De Voé is credited with being one of the first Europeans to explore the St. Lawrence River region.

Another historical figure with the DEVOE surname was Pierre de Voé, a 17th-century French architect and engineer who was responsible for the construction of several notable buildings in Paris, including the Church of Saint-Sulpice and the Collège des Quatre-Nations (now the Institut de France).

In the 18th century, a French family with the surname DEVOE immigrated to the United States and settled in New York. One member of this family, John DeVoe, was a prominent merchant and landowner in New York City during the late 1700s and early 1800s.

Another individual of note was James DeVoe, an American educator and author who was born in 1817 in New York. He wrote several books on grammar and composition, and served as the principal of a school in New York City for many years.

A more recent figure with the DEVOE surname was Walter DeVoe, an American businessman and philanthropist who lived from 1881 to 1952. He founded the DeVoe Paint Company and later donated a significant portion of his wealth to various educational and cultural institutions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name DeVoe

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

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 DeVoe was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 80.66% 4,128
Non-Hispanic Black Only 14.36% 735
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.31% 16
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.66% 34
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.91% 98
Hispanic Origin 2.09% 107

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 DeVoe has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 80.66% 82.38% -2.11%
Black 14.36% 13.56% 5.73%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.31% 0.33% -6.25%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.66% 0.92% -32.91%
Two or More Races 1.91% 1.37% 32.93%
Hispanic 2.09% 1.45% 36.16%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"DeVoe last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/devoe-surname-popularity/.

"DeVoe last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/devoe-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 December, 2024

DeVoe last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/devoe-surname-popularity/.

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