2000
#19,806
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,257
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.47
Rare Last name
Petrov
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Pyotr, the Russian form of Peter, meaning "stone" or "rock."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,632 Americans carry the last name Petrov. That puts it at #12,813 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 130,226 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Petrov 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Petrov with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 130,226
Census rank
#12,813
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,295 bearers of the surname Petrov in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12813th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Petrov
The surname Petrov originated in Russia and is a patronymic name, meaning "son of Petr". The name can be traced back to the early medieval period, likely derived from the Greek name Petros, meaning "rock" or "stone". It became a popular name in Russia after the Christianization of the region in the 10th century.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Petrov can be found in various Russian chronicles and manuscripts from the 13th and 14th centuries. One notable example is the Novgorod Chronicle, which mentions several individuals with the surname Petrov who were prominent citizens and officials in the city of Novgorod during that time.
Over the centuries, the surname Petrov has been associated with several notable figures in Russian history. One of the earliest was Afanasy Petrov, a 16th-century Russian diplomat and ambassador to various European courts. Another notable bearer of the name was Vasily Petrov, a famous 17th-century Russian explorer who led expeditions to Siberia and the Far East.
In the 19th century, the Petrov surname gained further prominence with individuals such as Andrey Petrov, a renowned Russian painter and portraitist who lived from 1837 to 1888. Another noteworthy figure was Grigory Petrov, a prominent Russian composer and music theorist who lived from 1835 to 1889.
One of the most famous Petrovs in recent history was Viktor Petrov, a Soviet spy who defected to Australia in the 1950s. His defection and subsequent testimony provided valuable insights into Soviet espionage activities during the Cold War era.
It is worth mentioning that the surname Petrov has also been associated with various place names in Russia, such as Petrovsk, Petrovskoe, and Petrovka, among others. These place names often derived from the name Petr or were named after individuals with the surname Petrov who were influential in the founding or development of those settlements.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Petrov
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Petrov 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 Petrov surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.4% · 2,166
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 60
- Two or more races1.9% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 17
- Black or African American0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Petrov
Petrov 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
#14,113
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,129
+872 bearers (+69.4%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Up 5,693 places
2020
#12,813
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,295
+166 bearers (+7.8%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Up 1,300 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,806 | 1,257 | 0.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,113 | 2,129 | 0.72 | +872 bearers (+69.4%) | Up 5,693 places |
| 2020 | #12,813 | 2,295 | 0.77 | +166 bearers (+7.8%) | Up 1,300 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 Petrov 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 | #14,113 | #12,813 | 9.2% |
| Count | 2,129 | 2,295 | 7.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.77 | 6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Petrov bearers went from 2,129 to 2,295 (+7.8% change). The surname moved up 1,300 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,113 to #12,813.
FAQ
Petrov surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Petrov?
Name Census estimates that about 2,632 living Americans carry the surname Petrov. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 130,226 residents.
How common is Petrov?
Petrov ranks #12,813 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.77 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,295 people with the surname Petrov. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,632), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.77 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Petrov.
Has Petrov become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Petrov went from 2,129 recorded bearers to 2,295. That is an increase of 166 (+7.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #14,113 to #12,813.
What does the Census say about the background of Petrov?
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrov, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Petrov in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.4% (2,166 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Petrov appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.4%), Hispanic (2.6%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Petrov (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 Petrov mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the given name Pyotr, the Russian form of Peter, meaning "stone" or "rock." 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 Petrov (0.77 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 people have the surname Petrov?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.