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

Ravitch, 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 Ravitch surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ravitch in America

Ravitch is the 122314th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ravitch surname appeared 141 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 Ravitch.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ravitch 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 Ravitch

The surname Ravitch is of Slavic origin, specifically from regions of modern-day Ukraine and Russia. It likely emerged in the 16th or 17th century from the Slavic root word "rav," meaning "smooth" or "flat." This suggests the name may have initially referred to someone who lived on a flat or level area of land.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ravitch name can be found in the town records of Zhytomyr, Ukraine, dating back to the late 17th century. Here, a farmer named Ivan Ravitch is mentioned as a landowner in the area. The name also appears in various church and birth records from the region during this time period, often with slight spelling variations like Ravich or Ravytch.

In the 19th century, the Ravitch name began to spread more widely throughout the Russian Empire as families migrated and sought new opportunities. Notable individuals from this era include the writer and philosopher Mikhail Ravitch (1825-1892), who wrote extensively on social and political issues of the time.

As the 20th century dawned, the Ravitch surname continued to gain prominence. One of the most influential figures was Esther Ravitch (1914-2003), an American educator and author who served as Assistant Secretary of Education during the George H.W. Bush administration. Her work on education policy and standards had a significant impact on the field.

Another noteworthy individual was the journalist and author Norman Ravitch (1923-2005), who wrote extensively on crime and law enforcement issues. His book "The Covenant of Justice" was a seminal work on the American legal system.

In the world of science, the name Ravitch is associated with Dr. Mark Ravitch (1889-1977), a pioneering American surgeon who developed innovative techniques for repairing congenital chest wall deformities in children.

While the Ravitch surname may have originated in a specific geographic region, it has since spread across the globe, with individuals bearing this name making contributions in various fields throughout history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ravitch

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

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

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

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