Narváez last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Narváez

Of Spanish origin, referring to people from the town of Narvarte or to someone from the Navarrese region.

Narváez, 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 Narváez surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Narváez in America

Narváez is the 115639th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Narváez surname appeared 151 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 Narváez.

We can also compare 2010 data for Narváez 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 115639 129619 -11.40%
Count 151 121 22.06%
Proportion per 100k 0.05 0.04 22.22%

The history of the last name Narváez

The surname NARVAES originated in Spain during the medieval period, around the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Spanish place name Narvarte, which itself comes from the Basque words "narru" meaning leather and "arte" meaning valley or pass, referring to a valley or pass where leather goods were produced or traded.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name NARVAES can be found in the Becerro de Behetrías, a medieval Spanish census document from the 14th century, where it appears as "Narváez". This suggests that the name had already been established in Spain by that time.

In the late 15th century, a notable figure named Pánfilo de Narváez (1470-1528) gained prominence as a Spanish conquistador and soldier. He participated in the conquest of Cuba and led an unsuccessful expedition to Florida, where he was ultimately lost at sea.

Another early bearer of the NARVAES name was Juan Fernández de Narváez (1491-1547), a Spanish explorer and military commander who participated in the conquest of Mexico alongside Hernán Cortés.

During the 16th century, the name NARVAES also appeared in various legal and administrative documents in Spain, such as the Catastro de Ensenada, a census conducted in the mid-18th century.

In the 17th century, a notable figure named Pedro Fernández de Navarrete (1618-1687) was a Spanish painter and writer who served as the secretary to King Philip IV of Spain.

In the 19th century, Ramón Narváez y Campos (1800-1868) was a Spanish military officer and statesman who served as the Prime Minister of Spain on two occasions.

The NARVAES surname has also been found in various parts of Latin America, likely carried there by Spanish settlers and immigrants during the colonial era.

Overall, the NARVAES surname has a long history rooted in Spain, with its origins tracing back to the medieval period and a possible connection to the Basque language and leather trade. It has been borne by notable figures throughout Spanish and Latin American history, from conquistadors and explorers to military leaders and statesmen.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Narváez

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

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 Narváez was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 8.61% 13
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 0.00% 0
Hispanic Origin 89.40% 135

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 8.61% 4.96% 53.80%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
Two or More Races 0.00% 4.13% -200.00%
Hispanic 89.40% 89.26% 0.16%

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

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

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

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

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

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.