Shawver last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Shawver

An occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold shaves, a woodworking tool for smoothing surfaces.

Shawver, 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 Shawver surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Shawver in America

Shawver is the 11793rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Shawver surname appeared 2,656 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Shawver.

We can also compare 2010 data for Shawver 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 11793 11146 5.64%
Count 2,656 2,611 1.71%
Proportion per 100k 0.90 0.97 -7.49%

The history of the last name Shawver

The surname SHAWVER is believed to have originated from the Old English word "sceawere," which means "viewer" or "watcher." This name likely referred to an occupation, such as a watchman or a scout, during the medieval period in England.

The earliest recorded use of the name dates back to the 13th century in the county of Derbyshire, England. One of the earliest known bearers of this surname was Robert le Shawere, who was mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Derbyshire in 1273.

In the 14th century, variations of the name started appearing in other parts of England, such as Shawere, Shawwer, and Shawver. These variations were likely due to differences in regional dialects and the way the name was spelled and pronounced.

The name SHAWVER can also be traced back to place names in England, such as Shaw and Shawbury. These place names were derived from the Old English word "sceaga," meaning "small wood" or "copse."

One notable bearer of the SHAWVER surname was Sir John Shawer, who lived in the 15th century and served as a knight during the Wars of the Roses. Another prominent individual was William Shawer, who was a merchant and alderman in the city of London during the 16th century.

During the 17th century, the name SHAWVER began to appear in records in the American colonies, as many English settlers emigrated to the New World. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in America was Thomas Shawver, who arrived in Virginia in 1635.

Another notable bearer of the SHAWVER surname was John Shawver, who was born in 1745 in Virginia and served as a private in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.

In the 19th century, the SHAWVER surname continued to be found in various parts of the United States, with concentrations in states like Pennsylvania, Ohio, and Indiana. One notable individual from this period was Daniel Shawver, who was born in 1825 in Ohio and became a successful farmer and landowner.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Shawver

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

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 Shawver was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 93.52% 2,484
Non-Hispanic Black Only 2.07% 55
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.38% 10
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.49% 13
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 1.47% 39
Hispanic Origin 2.07% 55

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 Shawver has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 93.52% 95.37% -1.96%
Black 2.07% 1.76% 16.19%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.38% (S)% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.49% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 1.47% 1.07% 31.50%
Hispanic 2.07% 1.42% 37.25%

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

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Shawver last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/shawver-surname-popularity/.

"Shawver last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/shawver-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Shawver last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/shawver-surname-popularity/.

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