2000
#2,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,381
First available Census row
Per 100,000 6.07
Uncommon Last name
Purvis
Derived from the Old French term "pur vis," meaning "pure face," likely referring to someone with a clear complexion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 18,319 Americans carry the last name Purvis. That puts it at #2,220 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 5.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 18,710 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Purvis 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Purvis with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
18K
1 in 18,710
Census rank
#2,220
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
16K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 15,975 bearers of the surname Purvis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 5.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2220th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Purvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Purvis
The surname Purvis originated from the Anglo-Norman French word "pore-vis" meaning "poor-faced". It first appeared in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name was initially given as a nickname to someone with a thin, pale, or sickly appearance.
The earliest known record of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Poreviz" and "Poreveys". These early spellings illustrate the name's evolution from the French "pore-vis" to its more modern form.
In the 13th century, the surname is found in various records from Northumberland and Yorkshire, indicating its origins in the northern parts of England. One of the earliest recorded bearers is John Purvis, who is mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Northumberland in 1273.
By the 14th century, the name had spread to other parts of the country, with records showing bearers in Cambridgeshire, Oxfordshire, and Somerset. The spellings during this period included Porvis, Porvys, and Pourveys.
Several notable individuals with the surname Purvis have left their mark throughout history. One of the earliest was Robert Purvis (c. 1510-1588), an English clergyman who served as the Dean of York from 1570 until his death.
In the 17th century, Thomas Purvis (1624-1695) was a prominent English Presbyterian minister and author who played a significant role in the religious debates of his time.
The 18th century saw the rise of Robert Purvis (1752-1826), a Scottish surgeon and writer who served as the President of the Royal College of Surgeons in Edinburgh.
In the 19th century, Robert Purvis (1810-1898) was a notable American abolitionist and philanthropist who worked alongside prominent figures like William Lloyd Garrison and Frederick Douglass in the fight against slavery.
Another notable bearer of the surname was James Purvis (1884-1959), a Scottish businessman and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for East Renfrewshire from 1945 to 1959.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Purvis
Among Census respondents with the surname Purvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Purvis 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 Purvis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White76.7% · 12,247
- Black or African American15.4% · 2,459
- Two or more races4.0% · 635
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 480
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 103
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 51
Timeline
Historical Census data for Purvis
Purvis 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
#2,177
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 16,686
+305 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 5.66
Rank movement Down 149 places
2020
#2,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,975
-711 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 5.34
Rank movement Down 43 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,028 | 16,381 | 6.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,177 | 16,686 | 5.66 | +305 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 149 places |
| 2020 | #2,220 | 15,975 | 5.34 | -711 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 43 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 Purvis 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 | #2,177 | #2,220 | -2.0% |
| Count | 16,686 | 15,975 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 5.66 | 5.34 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Purvis bearers went from 16,686 to 15,975 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 43 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,177 to #2,220.
FAQ
Purvis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Purvis?
Name Census estimates that about 18,319 living Americans carry the surname Purvis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 18,710 residents.
How common is Purvis?
Purvis ranks #2,220 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 5.34 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 15,975 people with the surname Purvis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (18,319), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 5.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 5.34 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Purvis.
Has Purvis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Purvis went from 16,686 recorded bearers to 15,975. That is a decrease of 711 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,177 to #2,220.
What does the Census say about the background of Purvis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Purvis, the largest self-reported group is White at 76.7%. The next largest groups are Black (15.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Purvis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 76.7% (12,247 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Purvis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (76.7%), Black (15.4%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Purvis (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 Purvis mean?
Derived from the Old French term "pur vis," meaning "pure face," likely referring to someone with a clear complexion. 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 Purvis (5.34 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 common is the surname Purvis?
Find out how many people have the last name Purvis on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.