2000
#13,153
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.79
Rare Last name
Nova
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near newly cultivated land or a new settlement.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,498 Americans carry the last name Nova. That puts it at #10,077 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.02 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 97,986 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nova 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
3.5K
1 in 97,986
Census rank
#10,077
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,050 bearers of the surname Nova in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.02 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10077th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nova, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.3%. The next largest groups are White (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nova
The surname Nova has its origins in Portugal and Spain, where it first emerged in the late medieval period. It is derived from the Latin word "nova," meaning "new." In the Iberian Peninsula, the surname was likely given to someone who had recently settled in a particular area or town.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Nova surname can be found in the "Libro de la Montería," a 14th-century hunting manuscript commissioned by King Alfonso XI of Castile. The manuscript mentions a individual named Ruy Nova, who was a landowner in the region of Extremadura.
In the 15th century, the Nova surname appeared in various Portuguese and Spanish records, including tax rolls and municipal documents. For example, a merchant named Fernão Nova is mentioned in a 1487 document from the city of Lisbon.
The surname Nova can also be traced back to place names in Portugal and Spain, such as Nova de Gaia, a city near Porto, and Nova Hesperia, an ancient name for the Iberian Peninsula. It is possible that some individuals adopted the surname Nova after migrating from these locations.
One of the earliest notable individuals with the Nova surname was João de Nova, a Portuguese explorer and navigator who lived in the early 16th century. He is known for leading an expedition to the Indian Ocean in 1501, during which he discovered the islands of Mauritius and Réunion.
Another prominent figure was Álvaro de Nova, a Spanish Renaissance scholar and humanist who lived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He was a respected professor at the University of Salamanca and wrote extensively on classical literature and philosophy.
In the 17th century, the Nova surname can be found in various parts of the Portuguese and Spanish empires, including Brazil and the Philippines. One example is Pedro Teixeira de Nova, a Portuguese explorer who led an expedition along the Amazon River in the 1630s and produced valuable maps of the region.
During the 18th century, the Nova surname gained prominence in the arts and literature. José Joaquim de Nova, a Portuguese poet and playwright, was a prominent figure in the Arcadian movement of the late 1700s.
In the 19th century, the Nova surname became more widely dispersed as individuals migrated to other parts of the world. One notable figure was Manuel Nova, a Cuban writer and political activist who played a significant role in the Cuban independence movement in the late 1800s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nova
Among Census respondents with the surname Nova, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.3%. The next largest groups are White (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Nova 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 Nova surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino75.3% · 2,296
- White17.3% · 527
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.5% · 106
- Black or African American1.9% · 59
- Two or more races1.6% · 48
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nova
Nova 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
#10,886
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,928
+797 bearers (+37.4%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Up 2,267 places
2020
#10,077
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,050
+122 bearers (+4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.02
Rank movement Up 809 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,153 | 2,131 | 0.79 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,886 | 2,928 | 0.99 | +797 bearers (+37.4%) | Up 2,267 places |
| 2020 | #10,077 | 3,050 | 1.02 | +122 bearers (+4.2%) | Up 809 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 Nova 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 | #10,886 | #10,077 | 7.4% |
| Count | 2,928 | 3,050 | 4.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 1.02 | 3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nova bearers went from 2,928 to 3,050 (+4.2% change). The surname moved up 809 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,886 to #10,077.
FAQ
Nova surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nova?
Name Census estimates that about 3,498 living Americans carry the surname Nova. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 97,986 residents.
How common is Nova?
Nova ranks #10,077 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.02 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 3,050 people with the surname Nova. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,498), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.02 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.02 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 Nova.
Has Nova become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nova went from 2,928 recorded bearers to 3,050. That is an increase of 122 (+4.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,886 to #10,077.
What does the Census say about the background of Nova?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nova, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 75.3%. The next largest groups are White (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Nova in the 2020 Census, accounting for 75.3% (2,296 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nova appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (75.3%), White (17.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.5%). 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 Nova (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 Nova mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near newly cultivated land or a new settlement. 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 Nova (1.02 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 surname Nova?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.