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

Svay, 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 Svay surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Svay in America

Svay is the 58604th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Svay surname appeared 346 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 Svay.

We can also compare 2010 data for Svay 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 Svay

The surname "Svay" is of Czech origin and is believed to have emerged during the 13th century. It is thought to have derived from the Czech word "svaty," which means "holy" or "sacred." The name likely originated in the regions around modern-day Prague and Central Bohemia.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname "Svay" can be found in a manuscript from the Cistercian monastery in Sedlec, dated around 1280. The document mentions a monk named Frater Svaius, suggesting the name's religious connotations.

In the 14th century, the name appeared in several land ownership records in the villages surrounding Prague. A notable example is Vaclav Svay, who owned a sizable estate in the town of Beroun in the 1340s.

During the 15th century, the name gained prominence with the rise of the Hussite movement in Bohemia. Jan Svay, a prominent Hussite preacher and reformer, was born in 1402 and played a significant role in the religious upheaval of that era.

Another notable figure bearing the surname "Svay" was Katerina Svay, a 16th-century midwife and herbalist from the town of Kutná Hora. Her writings on traditional Czech medicine and childbirth practices were highly influential in her time.

In the 17th century, the name appeared in various military records from the Thirty Years' War. Jakub Svay, born in 1618, was a renowned cavalry officer who fought alongside the Swedish forces during the conflict.

Later, in the 19th century, a prominent Czech artist named Karel Svay (1824-1892) gained recognition for his landscape paintings depicting the countryside around Prague. His works are now housed in several prestigious art galleries in the Czech Republic.

While the surname "Svay" is not as common today as it once was, it continues to carry a rich historical legacy, with its origins firmly rooted in the Czech lands and the religious and cultural traditions of Central Europe.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Svay

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

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

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

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