The Davis surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 1,116,357 people carried this name — #8 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 264 people counted. That is up 4% from 1,072,335 in 2000.
In Ireland’s birth registers, 1890
Ireland registered 104 births for the Davis name in 1890.
They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Leinster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 4,600 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. 9 of them were indexed under other spellings of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “Dublin and Antrim.”
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born, 1890
Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 747 people named Davis live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 305 people named Davis.
112 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 41 départements, most often Paris.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
250 people named Davis live in Switzerland.
They live in 16 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Poland’s population register
91 people named Davis have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 378 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 14 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Masovian.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 56 people named Davis live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in East Flanders.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
382 people named Davis are counted in Sweden and Finland.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In print
Davis in American newspapers,
1895–1923.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 4,520,485 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Davis,
with a public archive behind them.
-
John Wesley Davis 1799–1859 · judge -
Joseph R. Davis 1825–1896 · lawyer -
Varina Davis 1826–1906 · writer -
Andrew Jackson Davis 1826–1910 · writer -
Edmund J. Davis 1827–1883 · judge
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 95 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Davis.
- Davies 33,753 · U.S. census
- Davignon 983 · U.S. census
- Davila 44,388 · U.S. census
- Davin 1,723 · U.S. census
- Davinroy 141 · U.S. census
- Davion 113 · U.S. census
- Davit 126 · U.S. census
- Davoli 458 · U.S. census
- Davy 3,316 · U.S. census
- Dawson 83,182 · U.S. census
- Dax 400 · U.S. census
- Day 105,091 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Davis is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.