2000
#10,312
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,863
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.06
Rare Last name
Portis
A surname of French origin referring to someone who lived near a gate or entrance.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,522 Americans carry the last name Portis. That puts it at #10,018 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 97,318 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Portis 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
3.5K
1 in 97,318
Census rank
#10,018
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,071 bearers of the surname Portis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10018th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Portis, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.2%. The next largest groups are White (17.6%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Portis
The surname Portis originated in Italy and is derived from the Latin word "portus", meaning "port" or "harbor". This suggests that the name was likely first borne by someone who lived near a port or worked in a harbor-related profession.
The earliest known recording of the name Portis can be found in the Venetian Republic's records from the 13th century, where it was spelled "Portis". This indicates that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in manuscripts from the city of Genoa, where it was recorded as "Portisi". This variation likely arose due to the influence of the local dialect.
One notable individual with the surname Portis was Giovanni Portis, a Venetian merchant and explorer who traveled extensively throughout the Mediterranean in the late 15th century. He is believed to have been born around 1450 and died in Venice in the early 1500s.
Another prominent figure with this name was Lorenzo Portis, a painter from the city of Siena who lived during the Renaissance. He was known for his religious works and frescoes, and his most famous painting, "The Adoration of the Magi", can still be seen in the Siena Cathedral today. Lorenzo Portis was born in 1475 and died in 1554.
In the 17th century, the name Portis appeared in records from the city of Naples, where it was sometimes spelled "Portisi". One notable individual from this time was Antonio Portis, a lawyer and legal scholar who wrote extensively on the laws and customs of the Kingdom of Naples. He was born in 1620 and died in 1692.
A famous bearer of the Portis surname in more recent history was Guido Portis, an Italian painter and sculptor who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He was known for his portraits and landscapes, and his works can be found in several museums across Italy. Guido Portis was born in 1860 and died in 1928.
Throughout its history, the surname Portis has also been associated with various place names in Italy, such as the town of Portis in the province of Cuneo, and the village of Portisi in the province of Naples. These locations likely contributed to the spread and evolution of the name over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Portis
Among Census respondents with the surname Portis, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.2%. The next largest groups are White (17.6%) and Two or More Races (6.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Portis 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 Portis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American71.2% · 2,186
- White17.6% · 539
- Two or more races6.4% · 197
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 117
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Portis
Portis 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
#9,877
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,274
+411 bearers (+14.4%)
Per 100,000 1.11
Rank movement Up 435 places
2020
#10,018
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,071
-203 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 1.03
Rank movement Down 141 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,312 | 2,863 | 1.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,877 | 3,274 | 1.11 | +411 bearers (+14.4%) | Up 435 places |
| 2020 | #10,018 | 3,071 | 1.03 | -203 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 141 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 Portis 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 | #9,877 | #10,018 | -1.4% |
| Count | 3,274 | 3,071 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.11 | 1.03 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Portis bearers went from 3,274 to 3,071 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 141 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,877 to #10,018.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Portis
FAQ
Portis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Portis?
Name Census estimates that about 3,522 living Americans carry the surname Portis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 97,318 residents.
How common is Portis?
Portis ranks #10,018 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.03 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 3,071 people with the surname Portis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,522), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.03 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 Portis.
Has Portis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Portis went from 3,274 recorded bearers to 3,071. That is a decrease of 203 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,877 to #10,018.
What does the Census say about the background of Portis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Portis, the largest self-reported group is Black at 71.2%. The next largest groups are White (17.6%) and Two or More Races (6.4%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Portis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 71.2% (2,186 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Portis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (71.2%), White (17.6%), Two or More Races (6.4%). 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 Portis (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 Portis mean?
A surname of French origin referring to someone who lived near a gate or entrance. 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 Portis (1.03 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 common is the surname Portis?
If you just want to know how common the surname Portis is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.