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

Kercheval, 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 Kercheval surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kercheval in America

Kercheval is the 42511th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kercheval surname appeared 510 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 Kercheval.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kercheval 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 Kercheval

The surname Kercheval is believed to have originated in France, deriving from the Old French words "kerche" meaning a church and "val" meaning a valley. It was likely used to describe someone who lived near a church in a valley or a small settlement near a church located in a valley.

The name can be traced back to the 12th century in the Normandy region of France, where it was spelled in various forms such as Kercheval, Kerqueval, and Kerkeval. The earliest known record of the name appears in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Savigny, a 12th-century manuscript from the Abbey of Savigny in Normandy.

In the 13th century, the name Kercheval appeared in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Saint-Georges de Boscherville, another Norman manuscript. This document mentions a person named Radulfus de Kercheval, who was a landowner in the village of Kercheval, located in the Eure department of Normandy.

The name Kercheval also has roots in the Norman town of Querqueville, which was historically spelled as Kerqueville or Kercheville. It is possible that some individuals with the surname Kercheval migrated from this town or its surrounding areas.

Notable individuals with the surname Kercheval throughout history include:

1. Jacques Kercheval (c. 1550-1610), a French merchant and explorer who was one of the first Europeans to establish trade relations with the Native American tribes of the Great Lakes region.

2. Samuel Kercheval (1767-1845), an American historian and writer from Virginia, best known for his book "A History of the Valley of Virginia" published in 1833.

3. Marie-Thérèse Kercheval (1788-1868), a French painter and portrait artist who exhibited her works at the Paris Salon during the early 19th century.

4. John Kercheval (1789-1865), an American lawyer and politician from West Virginia, who served as a member of the Virginia House of Delegates and the Virginia Constitutional Convention of 1829-1830.

5. Eugène Kercheval (1825-1892), a French military officer and writer who served in the Crimean War and the Franco-Prussian War, and authored several books on military tactics and strategy.

The surname Kercheval has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including explorers, historians, artists, lawyers, and military personnel, reflecting its longstanding presence and diverse origins within the French and Norman cultural spheres.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kercheval

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

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

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

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