Find out how popular the last name Travis is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Travis.
An English occupational surname for a gate keeper or toll collector, derived from the Old French "travers".
Travis, 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 Travis surname is from the 2010 census data.
Travis is the 998th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.
The Travis surname appeared 34,985 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 12 people would have the surname Travis.
We can also compare 2010 data for Travis 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 | 998 | 960 | 3.88% |
Count | 34,985 | 33,339 | 4.82% |
Proportion per 100k | 11.86 | 12.36 | -4.13% |
The surname Travis is believed to have originated in France, derived from the Old French word "travers," which means "crosswise" or "oblique." The name likely referred to someone who lived near a crossroads or a winding path.
In the early 12th century, the surname was recorded in various forms, such as "de Travers" or "de Trauers," indicating a placename origin. The first recorded instance of the surname was in Normandy, France, around 1180, when a man named Radulfus de Travers was mentioned in a legal document.
The name Travis made its way to England after the Norman Conquest in 1066, when many French nobles and their families settled in the country. One of the earliest recorded Englishmen with the surname Travis was William de Travers, who lived in Leicestershire in the late 12th century.
During the Middle Ages, the Travis family held lands and properties in various parts of England, including Northamptonshire, Gloucestershire, and Yorkshire. One notable member of the family was Sir John Travis (c. 1380-1452), a knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War and was rewarded with lands in Somersetshire.
In the 16th century, the surname Travis began to appear in its modern spelling, as seen in the records of John Travis (c. 1520-1590), a wealthy merchant from Bristol. Another prominent figure was Thomas Travis (1595-1654), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works.
As the Travis family spread across England, variations of the surname emerged, such as Traviss, Travers, and Travas. One notable individual was Benjamin Travers (1783-1858), a British surgeon and anatomist who made significant contributions to the field of medicine.
Other historical figures with the surname Travis include:
We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Travis.
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:
For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Travis was:
Race/Ethnicity | Percentage | Total Occurrences |
---|---|---|
Non-Hispanic White Only | 73.32% | 25,651 |
Non-Hispanic Black Only | 21.01% | 7,350 |
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only | 0.52% | 182 |
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.53% | 185 |
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races | 2.21% | 773 |
Hispanic Origin | 2.40% | 840 |
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 Travis has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.
2010 | 2000 | Change (%) | |
---|---|---|---|
White | 73.32% | 76.04% | -3.64% |
Black | 21.01% | 20.02% | 4.83% |
Asian and Pacific Islander | 0.52% | 0.49% | 5.94% |
American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.53% | 0.42% | 23.16% |
Two or More Races | 2.21% | 1.45% | 41.53% |
Hispanic | 2.40% | 1.58% | 41.21% |
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 Travis was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.
If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Travis, please contact us.
We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.
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!
<a href="http://namecensus.com/last-names/travis-surname-popularity/">Travis last name popularity, history, and meaning</a>
"Travis last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on December 2, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/travis-surname-popularity/.
"Travis last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/travis-surname-popularity/. Accessed 2 December, 2024
Travis last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/travis-surname-popularity/.
Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.
Simple as that.