2000
#7,305
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,207
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.56
Rare Last name
Neves
A Portuguese and Galician surname derived from the plural of neve, meaning "snows" or "snow-covered mountains."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,704 Americans carry the last name Neves. That puts it at #6,552 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 60,090 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Neves 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Neves with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.7K
1 in 60,090
Census rank
#6,552
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,974 bearers of the surname Neves in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6552nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Neves, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Black (7.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Neves
The surname NEVES originated in Portugal and Spain. It is derived from the Portuguese word "neve" meaning "snow" and refers to someone who lived near snowy mountains or had a connection to snow. The earliest recorded spelling of the name was "Neves" in the 13th century.
The name first appeared in historical records in the Livro Velho de Linhagens, a 14th-century Portuguese book of lineages. It was mentioned in reference to Gonçalo Neves, a knight who fought in the Reconquista against the Moors in the 12th century.
In the 15th century, the NEVES surname was found in the town of Neves, located in the Bragança District of northeastern Portugal. This town likely took its name from the surrounding snowy mountains, and the surname may have originated there.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the NEVES surname was João Neves, a Portuguese navigator who lived in the late 15th century. He accompanied Vasco da Gama on his voyage to India in 1497-1499.
In the 16th century, Pedro Neves (1530-1612) was a Spanish-born Catholic priest who served as a missionary in Paraguay and Argentina. He helped establish the Jesuit Reductions among the Guarani people.
In the 17th century, Francisco Neves (1615-1686) was a Portuguese painter and architect who worked primarily in Lisbon. He is best known for his work on the Igreja da Graça church.
In the 19th century, José Neves (1820-1897) was a Portuguese politician and writer who served as Prime Minister of Portugal from 1891 to 1892.
The NEVES surname spread from Portugal and Spain to other parts of the world through emigration and colonization, particularly to Brazil, where it is also a common surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Neves
Among Census respondents with the surname Neves, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Black (7.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Neves 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 Neves surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.0% · 3,630
- Hispanic or Latino10.5% · 520
- Black or African American7.4% · 370
- Two or more races5.8% · 287
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 143
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Neves
Neves 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
#6,748
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,997
+790 bearers (+18.8%)
Per 100,000 1.69
Rank movement Up 557 places
2020
#6,552
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,974
-23 bearers (-0.5%)
Per 100,000 1.66
Rank movement Up 196 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,305 | 4,207 | 1.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,748 | 4,997 | 1.69 | +790 bearers (+18.8%) | Up 557 places |
| 2020 | #6,552 | 4,974 | 1.66 | -23 bearers (-0.5%) | Up 196 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 Neves 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 | #6,748 | #6,552 | 2.9% |
| Count | 4,997 | 4,974 | -0.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.69 | 1.66 | -1.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Neves bearers went from 4,997 to 4,974 (-0.5% change). The surname moved up 196 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,748 to #6,552.
FAQ
Neves surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Neves?
Name Census estimates that about 5,704 living Americans carry the surname Neves. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 60,090 residents.
How common is Neves?
Neves ranks #6,552 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.66 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,974 people with the surname Neves. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,704), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.66 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Neves.
Has Neves become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Neves went from 4,997 recorded bearers to 4,974. That is a decrease of 23 (-0.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #6,748 to #6,552.
What does the Census say about the background of Neves?
Among Census respondents with the surname Neves, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.5%) and Black (7.4%). 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 Neves in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.0% (3,630 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Neves appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.0%), Hispanic (10.5%), Black (7.4%). 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 Neves (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 Neves mean?
A Portuguese and Galician surname derived from the plural of neve, meaning "snows" or "snow-covered mountains." 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 Neves (1.66 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 Neves?
Find out how many people have the last name Neves on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.