2010
#157,234
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Provard
A medieval French surname derived from the word "provende" meaning provisions or food allowance.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Provard. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Provard 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
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Provard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Provard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Provard
The surname Provard has its origins in France, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "provaire," which translates to "provider" or "provisioner." This suggests that the name was initially given to someone who worked in the trade of supplying provisions or goods.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the Provard name can be found in the cartulary of the Abbey of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris, dated around 1175. This document lists a certain "Robertus Provardus" as a landowner in the region. Additionally, the Provard name appears in several medieval records from the Champagne region of northeastern France.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the Provard name was Jean Provard, a merchant and alderman in the city of Reims. He is mentioned in municipal records from 1256 as having been involved in trade disputes with other merchants in the city.
Moving into the 14th century, the Provard name can be found in the records of the Duchy of Burgundy. A certain Simon Provard was a minor nobleman and landowner in the village of Vergy, as documented in a charter from 1328.
During the 15th century, the Provard name appears to have spread beyond France. In 1472, a Thomas Provard is listed as a resident of the city of Bristol in England, suggesting that members of the family had migrated to England by that time.
One of the more prominent individuals with the Provard surname was Jacques Provard, a French diplomat and ambassador who lived from 1540 to 1612. He served as the French ambassador to the Ottoman Empire and played a crucial role in negotiating treaties between France and the Sublime Porte.
Throughout its history, the Provard name has also been associated with various place names and regions. For instance, the village of Provard in the Côte-d'Or department of France likely derived its name from the surname, indicating that the family had a significant presence in that area.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Provard
Among Census respondents with the surname Provard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Provard 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 Provard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.2% · 85
- Black or African American7.9% · 8
- Two or more races5.0% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Provard
Provard appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-2 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 1,964 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #157,234 | 103 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -2 bearers (-1.9%) | Up 1,964 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 Provard 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 | #157,234 | #155,270 | 1.2% |
| Count | 103 | 101 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Provard bearers went from 103 to 101 (-1.9% change). The surname moved up 1,964 positions in the national ranking, going from #157,234 to #155,270.
FAQ
Provard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Provard?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Provard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Provard?
Provard ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 101 people with the surname Provard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Provard.
Has Provard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Provard went from 103 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #157,234 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Provard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Provard, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.2%. The next largest groups are Black (7.9%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Provard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.2% (85 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Provard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.2%), Black (7.9%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Provard (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 Provard mean?
A medieval French surname derived from the word "provende" meaning provisions or food allowance. 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 Provard (0.03 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 share the surname Provard?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.