2000
#10,600
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,775
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.03
Rare Last name
Hervey
Derived from a French place name meaning "farmstead or village where oats are grown."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,189 Americans carry the last name Hervey. That puts it at #10,936 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 107,480 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hervey 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 Hervey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 107,480
Census rank
#10,936
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,781 bearers of the surname Hervey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10936th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hervey, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.8%. The next largest groups are Black (38.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hervey
The surname HERVEY originates from Normandy, France, and is thought to have derived from the Old French name Hervi, which itself is believed to have stemmed from the Germanic name Hariwig, meaning "army battle" or "warrior army". It is likely that the name was introduced to England following the Norman Conquest of 1066.
One of the earliest recorded references to the HERVEY surname can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Hervius" and "Herveus". This indicates that the name had already become established in England by the late 11th century.
During the Middle Ages, variations of the spelling included "Hervey", "Hervie", and "Hervy". These spellings were often used interchangeably, reflecting the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time.
The HERVEY surname is closely associated with several notable individuals throughout history. These include John Hervey, 1st Earl of Bristol (1665-1751), a prominent English statesman and politician, and his son, Augustus John Hervey, 3rd Earl of Bristol (1724-1779), who was also a politician and served as Lord Privy Seal.
Another renowned figure was Thomas Hervey, born in 1698, who was an English naval officer and explorer. He is particularly noted for his exploration of the west coast of North America in the mid-18th century.
The HERVEY surname has also been linked to several place names in England, such as Hervey Hill in Norfolk and Hervey's Croft in Essex, both of which likely derived their names from early bearers of the surname.
Other notable individuals with the HERVEY surname include Frederick Hervey, 4th Earl of Bristol (1730-1803), a British nobleman and politician, and Frederick Hervey, 8th Marquess of Bristol (1769-1859), a member of the British House of Lords.
Throughout its history, the HERVEY surname has maintained a strong presence in England, particularly in the counties of Norfolk, Suffolk, and Essex, where many early bearers of the name were concentrated.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hervey
Among Census respondents with the surname Hervey, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.8%. The next largest groups are Black (38.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Hervey 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 Hervey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White52.8% · 1,469
- Black or African American38.9% · 1,083
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 104
- Two or more races3.7% · 104
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hervey
Hervey 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
#10,968
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,900
+125 bearers (+4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.98
Rank movement Down 368 places
2020
#10,936
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,781
-119 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 32 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,600 | 2,775 | 1.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,968 | 2,900 | 0.98 | +125 bearers (+4.5%) | Down 368 places |
| 2020 | #10,936 | 2,781 | 0.93 | -119 bearers (-4.1%) | Up 32 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 Hervey 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 | #10,968 | #10,936 | 0.3% |
| Count | 2,900 | 2,781 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.98 | 0.93 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hervey bearers went from 2,900 to 2,781 (-4.1% change). The surname moved up 32 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,968 to #10,936.
FAQ
Hervey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hervey?
Name Census estimates that about 3,189 living Americans carry the surname Hervey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 107,480 residents.
How common is Hervey?
Hervey ranks #10,936 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.93 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 2,781 people with the surname Hervey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,189), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.93 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 Hervey.
Has Hervey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hervey went from 2,900 recorded bearers to 2,781. That is a decrease of 119 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,968 to #10,936.
What does the Census say about the background of Hervey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hervey, the largest self-reported group is White at 52.8%. The next largest groups are Black (38.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Hervey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 52.8% (1,469 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hervey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (52.8%), Black (38.9%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Hervey (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 Hervey mean?
Derived from a French place name meaning "farmstead or village where oats are grown." 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 Hervey (0.93 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 common is the surname Hervey?
Find out how many people have the last name Hervey on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.