Navarre last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Navarre

A locational surname indicating one's origins in the former Kingdom of Navarre in northern Spain and southern France.

Navarre, 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 Navarre surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Navarre in America

Navarre is the 10582nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Navarre surname appeared 3,030 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Navarre.

We can also compare 2010 data for Navarre 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 10582 10386 1.87%
Count 3,030 2,843 6.37%
Proportion per 100k 1.03 1.05 -1.92%

The history of the last name Navarre

The surname Navarre is of French origin, deriving from the former Kingdom of Navarre, an area encompassing parts of modern-day Spain and France. The name is believed to have originated in the 9th century when the area was a sovereign kingdom.

Navarre likely stems from the Basque word "Nabar," meaning "a valley" or "a plain." The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears in the Cartulaire de Sainte-Foi de Morlaas, a medieval manuscript from the 12th century, where it is rendered as "Navarra."

One of the earliest known bearers of the Navarre surname was Sancho III, also known as Sancho the Great, who ruled the Kingdom of Navarre from 1004 to 1035. He played a significant role in the region's history and is often referred to as the first King of Navarre.

Another notable figure was Blanca of Navarre, born in 1385, who was the Queen of Navarre from 1425 to 1441. She was also the daughter of Charles III of Navarre and played a crucial role in the region's politics during the 15th century.

In the 13th century, the name Navarre appears in the Rotuli Litterarum Clausarum, a collection of English royal records, indicating that individuals with this surname had connections to England during that time period.

The Domesday Book, the famous medieval census commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086, does not contain any direct references to the surname Navarre, as it primarily focused on landowners and tenants in England. However, it does mention the town of Navarrenx in southwestern France, which may have been a place of origin for some bearers of the Navarre name.

Other notable individuals with the surname Navarre throughout history include:

  1. Pedro Navarre (c. 1460-1528), a Spanish conquistador and explorer who accompanied Hernán Cortés on his expedition to Mexico.
  2. Jean-Baptiste Navarre (1738-1816), a French painter and engraver known for his portraiture and mythological scenes.
  3. Marguerite de Navarre (1492-1549), a French princess and author who is considered one of the earliest feminist writers.
  4. Jean-Nicolas Navarre (1654-1738), a French military engineer and Marshal of France who played a significant role in the War of the Spanish Succession.
  5. Henri Navarre (1853-1931), a French architect best known for designing the Basilica of Sacré-Cœur in Paris.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Navarre

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

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 Navarre was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 81.09% 2,457
Non-Hispanic Black Only 9.37% 284
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.99% 30
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.36% 11
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.21% 67
Hispanic Origin 5.97% 181

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

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 81.09% 83.78% -3.26%
Black 9.37% 8.97% 4.36%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.99% 0.77% 25.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.36% 0.53% -38.20%
Two or More Races 2.21% 1.90% 15.09%
Hispanic 5.97% 4.05% 38.32%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

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

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

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

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