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

Kavan, 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 Kavan surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kavan in America

Kavan is the 43369th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kavan surname appeared 498 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kavan.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kavan 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 Kavan

The surname Kavan is believed to have originated in the Czech Republic during the medieval period. It is derived from the Slavic word "kavka," which means "jackdaw" or a small crow-like bird. The name may have been initially given as a nickname to someone who had a resemblance to the bird or whose occupation involved working with these birds.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Kavan can be traced back to the 14th century in various Czech historical documents and manuscripts. One notable mention is in the "Littera Cancellieriae Arnesti" from 1380, which lists a certain "Petrus Kawan" as a resident of the town of Litomerice.

In the 15th century, the surname Kavan appeared in the "Liber Vetustissimus Archidiaconatus Pragensis," an ancient register of the Archdiocese of Prague, where a "Johannes Kawan" was recorded as a parish priest in the town of Mnichovo Hradiste.

During the 16th century, the name Kavan was associated with several prominent figures. Jan Kavan (1501-1572) was a renowned Czech humanist scholar and rector of the University of Prague. Another notable bearer of the name was Vaclav Kavan (1538-1610), a Czech Protestant reformer and author of several religious treatises.

The 17th century saw the surname Kavan spread beyond the borders of the Czech lands. In 1647, a certain "Johann Kavan" was mentioned in the records of the town of Schweidnitz (now Swidnica, Poland) as a master brewer.

Fast-forwarding to the 19th century, one of the most famous individuals with the surname Kavan was Josef Kavan (1838-1893), a Czech painter and illustrator known for his depictions of historical scenes and landscapes.

Other notable individuals with the surname Kavan include:

1. Frantisek Kavan (1865-1921), a Czech architect and urban planner who designed several buildings in Prague.
2. Jaroslav Kavan (1872-1942), a Czech politician and member of the Czechoslovak National Assembly.
3. Jan Kavan (1946-), a Czech diplomat and politician who served as the President of the United Nations General Assembly from 2002 to 2003.
4. Vaclav Kavan (1961-), a Czech film director and screenwriter known for his award-winning movies such as "Leaving" and "Little Girl Blue."
5. Martin Kavan (1967-), a Czech tennis player who achieved a career-high ranking of World No. 26 in singles.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kavan

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kavan, 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!