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

Poitra, 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 Poitra surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Poitra in America

Poitra is the 22880th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Poitra surname appeared 1,119 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 Poitra.

We can also compare 2010 data for Poitra 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 Poitra

The surname Poitra has its origins in France, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "poitre," which referred to a type of woolen cloth or garment. This suggests that the name may have initially been an occupational surname given to individuals involved in the production or trade of this particular fabric.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Cartulaire de l'abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres, a 12th-century manuscript. This document mentions a certain Robertus Poitra, who was a landowner in the region of Chartres, France.

In the 13th century, the name appeared in the Testes de Nevill, a collection of charters and legal records from Normandy. This record includes a reference to a Willelmus Poitra, who was a witness in a legal dispute over land ownership.

During the 14th century, the name Poitra was documented in the Ploče Tablet, an inscribed stone slab discovered in the town of Ploče, Croatia. This artifact mentions a merchant named Petar Poitra, who was involved in maritime trade along the Adriatic coast.

In the 15th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Poitra was Jean Poitra, a French philosopher and theologian born in 1420. He was a prominent scholar at the University of Paris and authored several influential works on metaphysics and natural philosophy.

Another individual of historical significance was Marie Poitra, a 16th-century French noblewoman born in 1548. She was renowned for her patronage of the arts and her extensive collection of Renaissance paintings and sculptures, which is now housed in the Louvre Museum.

During the 17th century, the name Poitra was associated with several military leaders. One such figure was Capitaine Etienne Poitra, who served in the French army during the Thirty Years' War and was commended for his bravery in the Battle of Nördlingen in 1634.

While the surname Poitra has its roots in France, it has since spread to other parts of the world, likely due to migration and cultural exchange. However, the historical records and notable individuals mentioned above provide insight into the rich heritage and significance of this surname across various regions and time periods.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Poitra

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!