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

Petrov, 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 Petrov surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Petrov in America

Petrov is the 14113th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Petrov surname appeared 2,129 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 Petrov.

We can also compare 2010 data for Petrov 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.

The history of the last name Petrov

The surname Petrov originated in Russia and is a patronymic name, meaning "son of Petr". The name can be traced back to the early medieval period, likely derived from the Greek name Petros, meaning "rock" or "stone". It became a popular name in Russia after the Christianization of the region in the 10th century.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Petrov can be found in various Russian chronicles and manuscripts from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is the Novgorod Chronicle, which mentions several individuals with the surname Petrov who were prominent citizens and officials in the city of Novgorod during that time.

Over the centuries, the surname Petrov has been associated with several notable figures in Russian history. One of the earliest was Afanasy Petrov, a 16th-century Russian diplomat and ambassador to various European courts. Another notable bearer of the name was Vasily Petrov, a famous 17th-century Russian explorer who led expeditions to Siberia and the Far East.

In the 19th century, the Petrov surname gained further prominence with individuals such as Andrey Petrov, a renowned Russian painter and portraitist who lived from 1837 to 1888. Another noteworthy figure was Grigory Petrov, a prominent Russian composer and music theorist who lived from 1835 to 1889.

One of the most famous Petrovs in recent history was Viktor Petrov, a Soviet spy who defected to Australia in the 1950s. His defection and subsequent testimony provided valuable insights into Soviet espionage activities during the Cold War era.

It is worth mentioning that the surname Petrov has also been associated with various place names in Russia, such as Petrovsk, Petrovskoe, and Petrovka, among others. These place names often derived from the name Petr or were named after individuals with the surname Petrov who were influential in the founding or development of those settlements.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Petrov

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

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 Petrov was:

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

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

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

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