2000
#10,386
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,843
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.05
Rare Last name
Navarre
A locational surname indicating one's origins in the former Kingdom of Navarre in northern Spain and southern France.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,315 Americans carry the last name Navarre. That puts it at #10,580 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,395 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Navarre 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.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 103,395
Census rank
#10,580
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,891 bearers of the surname Navarre in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10580th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Navarre, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Hispanic (6.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Navarre
Among Census respondents with the surname Navarre, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Hispanic (6.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Navarre 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 Navarre surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.0% · 2,254
- Black or African American9.4% · 271
- Hispanic or Latino6.6% · 191
- Two or more races4.4% · 126
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Navarre
Navarre 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
#10,582
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,030
+187 bearers (+6.6%)
Per 100,000 1.03
Rank movement Down 196 places
2020
#10,580
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,891
-139 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Up 2 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,386 | 2,843 | 1.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,582 | 3,030 | 1.03 | +187 bearers (+6.6%) | Down 196 places |
| 2020 | #10,580 | 2,891 | 0.97 | -139 bearers (-4.6%) | Up 2 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 Navarre 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 | #10,582 | #10,580 | 0.0% |
| Count | 3,030 | 2,891 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.03 | 0.97 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Navarre bearers went from 3,030 to 2,891 (-4.6% change). The surname moved up 2 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,582 to #10,580.
FAQ
Navarre surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Navarre?
Name Census estimates that about 3,315 living Americans carry the surname Navarre. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,395 residents.
How common is Navarre?
Navarre ranks #10,580 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,891 people with the surname Navarre. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,315), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Navarre.
Has Navarre become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Navarre went from 3,030 recorded bearers to 2,891. That is a decrease of 139 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,582 to #10,580.
What does the Census say about the background of Navarre?
Among Census respondents with the surname Navarre, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.0%. The next largest groups are Black (9.4%) and Hispanic (6.6%). 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 Navarre in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.0% (2,254 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Navarre appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.0%), Black (9.4%), Hispanic (6.6%). 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 Navarre (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 Navarre mean?
A locational surname indicating one's origins in the former Kingdom of Navarre in northern Spain and southern France. 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 Navarre (0.97 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 many people have the last name Navarre?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Navarre at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.