2000
#104,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 159
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Savey
A variant spelling of the French surname Savoy, which was originally derived from the region of Savoy in France.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Savey. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Savey 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Savey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Savey, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.6%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Savey
The surname Savey originated from the region of Normandy in northern France during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "sauvage," which means "wild" or "savage." This likely referred to a person who lived in the wilderness or in a remote, rural area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appeared as "Salvagius." This was a record of landowners and tenants commissioned by William the Conqueror after the Norman conquest of England in 1066. The name was likely brought to England by Norman settlers during this time.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Sauvey," "Sauvagie," and "Sauvage," in several medieval records and manuscripts from Normandy and other parts of France. These variations in spelling were common during that era due to the lack of standardized spelling conventions.
One notable individual bearing the surname Savey was Jean Savey, a French poet and playwright who lived in the late 16th century. He was born in Normandy in 1564 and is best known for his works "Les Amours de Cléandre et de Narcis" and "La Sauvagine."
Another notable figure was Sir Thomas Savey, an English politician and Member of Parliament for Huntingdonshire in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in 1565 and served as a Justice of the Peace and Sheriff of Cambridgeshire and Huntingdonshire.
In the 18th century, the name appeared in various records from the region of Brittany in northwestern France. For example, Pierre Savey was a prominent merchant and landowner who lived in the town of Saint-Malo during this time.
In the 19th century, the name was found in various records from the United States, likely due to immigration from France and other parts of Europe. One notable American with the surname was William Savey, a Civil War soldier who fought for the Union Army and was awarded the Medal of Honor for his bravery in the Battle of Gettysburg in 1863.
Another individual of note was Marie-Louise Savey, a French painter and artist who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. She was born in Paris in 1879 and is known for her vibrant Impressionist-style paintings of rural landscapes and everyday scenes.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Savey
Among Census respondents with the surname Savey, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.6%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Savey 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 Savey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.3% · 108
- Black or African American6.6% · 8
- Two or more races4.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Savey
Savey 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
#110,286
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 160
+1 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 6,029 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
-39 bearers (-24.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 31,023 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #104,257 | 159 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #110,286 | 160 | 0.05 | +1 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 6,029 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | -39 bearers (-24.4%) | Down 31,023 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 Savey 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 | #110,286 | #141,309 | -28.1% |
| Count | 160 | 121 | -24.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -19.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Savey bearers went from 160 to 121 (-24.4% change). The surname moved down 31,023 positions in the national ranking, going from #110,286 to #141,309.
FAQ
Savey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Savey?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Savey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Savey?
Savey ranks #141,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 121 people with the surname Savey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Savey.
Has Savey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Savey went from 160 recorded bearers to 121. That is a decrease of 39 (-24.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #110,286 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Savey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Savey, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Black (6.6%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Savey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Savey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.3%), Black (6.6%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Savey (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 Savey mean?
A variant spelling of the French surname Savoy, which was originally derived from the region of Savoy in France. 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 Savey (0.04 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 Americans have the surname Savey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.