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

Petrova, 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 Petrova surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Petrova in America

Petrova is the 40016th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Petrova surname appeared 548 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Petrova.

We can also compare 2010 data for Petrova 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 Petrova

The surname Petrova is of Russian origin, derived from the personal name Petr, which is the Russian form of the Greek name Petros, meaning "stone" or "rock." The name Petrova emerged in the 11th century as a patronymic, indicating a person's relationship to their father or ancestor named Petr.

In medieval Russia, surnames were not commonly used, and people were identified by their given name, patronymic, and sometimes a descriptive nickname or occupation. The use of hereditary surnames became more widespread among the nobility and wealthy classes in the 15th and 16th centuries.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Petrova can be found in the Velvet Book, a compilation of genealogical records of Russian noble families from the 16th century. The Velvet Book mentions several individuals with the surname Petrova, such as Fyodor Ivanovich Petrov, who lived in the late 15th century.

The name Petrova is also found in various historical documents and manuscripts from the 17th and 18th centuries, including church records, census data, and land ownership records. Some notable individuals with the surname Petrova include:

1. Mariya Petrova (1576-1644), a Russian noblewoman and landowner.
2. Ivan Petrov (1612-1689), a Russian military commander who participated in the Russo-Polish War.
3. Natalya Petrova (1718-1794), a Russian poet and playwright.
4. Mikhail Petrov (1826-1887), a Russian writer and journalist.
5. Elizaveta Petrova (1892-1976), a Russian ballerina and dance instructor.

The name Petrova is also associated with several place names in Russia, such as the villages of Petrovo and Petrovka, which may have derived their names from individuals with the surname Petrova who lived in or founded those settlements.

Throughout its history, the surname Petrova has been subject to various spelling variations, including Petrov, Petrovich, and Petrovskaya, reflecting regional variations and linguistic changes over time. However, the core meaning and origin of the name remain rooted in the personal name Petr and its patronymic form.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Petrova

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

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

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

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