2000
#10,615
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,770
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.03
Rare Last name
Gravitt
An English occupational surname for someone who worked in a gravel pit or sold gravel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,878 Americans carry the last name Gravitt. That puts it at #11,920 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,095 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gravitt 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.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 119,095
Census rank
#11,920
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,510 bearers of the surname Gravitt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11920th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gravitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gravitt
The surname "GRAVITT" is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a locational name derived from the Old English words "graef" meaning "grave" and "hyd" meaning "hide" or a small area of land. This suggests that the name may have been used to identify someone who lived near a burial ground or graveyard.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Hundredorum Rolls of Yorkshire from the late 13th century, where it is spelled as "Gravehyde." This indicates that the name was likely established in the Yorkshire region during this time period.
By the 16th century, the name had evolved to its more modern spelling of "Gravitt." In 1566, a Thomas Gravitt is listed in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Beverley, Yorkshire, as being a landowner in the area.
The Gravitt family appears to have remained concentrated in Yorkshire and the surrounding counties for several centuries. In the late 17th century, a John Gravitt (1652-1723) was a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of York.
As the name spread, it began to appear in other parts of England as well. In the 18th century, a William Gravitt (1712-1782) was a notable architect and surveyor from Northamptonshire, responsible for designing several churches and country estates.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Gravitt was Sir Robert Gravitt (1795-1869), a British naval officer and explorer who served in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and later led several expeditions to the Arctic regions.
Other notable individuals with the Gravitt surname include Elizabeth Gravitt (1820-1905), a pioneering educator and advocate for women's rights in the United States, and James Gravitt (1876-1942), a renowned American artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraits.
While the name Gravitt is not among the most common surnames, it has a rich history spanning many centuries, with its origins firmly rooted in medieval England and the Yorkshire region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gravitt
Among Census respondents with the surname Gravitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Gravitt 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 Gravitt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.3% · 2,216
- Two or more races4.8% · 121
- Black or African American2.9% · 73
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 71
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gravitt
Gravitt 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
#10,857
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,934
+164 bearers (+5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 242 places
2020
#11,920
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,510
-424 bearers (-14.5%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 1,063 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,615 | 2,770 | 1.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,857 | 2,934 | 0.99 | +164 bearers (+5.9%) | Down 242 places |
| 2020 | #11,920 | 2,510 | 0.84 | -424 bearers (-14.5%) | Down 1,063 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 Gravitt 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 | #10,857 | #11,920 | -9.8% |
| Count | 2,934 | 2,510 | -14.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 0.84 | -15.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gravitt bearers went from 2,934 to 2,510 (-14.5% change). The surname moved down 1,063 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,857 to #11,920.
FAQ
Gravitt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gravitt?
Name Census estimates that about 2,878 living Americans carry the surname Gravitt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,095 residents.
How common is Gravitt?
Gravitt ranks #11,920 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 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 2,510 people with the surname Gravitt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,878), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 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 Gravitt.
Has Gravitt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gravitt went from 2,934 recorded bearers to 2,510. That is a decrease of 424 (-14.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,857 to #11,920.
What does the Census say about the background of Gravitt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gravitt, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.8%) and Black (2.9%). 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 Gravitt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (2,216 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gravitt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.3%), Two or More Races (4.8%), Black (2.9%). 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 Gravitt (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 Gravitt mean?
An English occupational surname for someone who worked in a gravel pit or sold gravel. 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 Gravitt (0.84 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 are called Gravitt?
Want to know how many people have the last name Gravitt? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.