Riva surname: meaning, census count and records | FamilyCrests

The Riva surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 1,271 people carried this name — #20,780 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 232,600 people counted. That is up 7% from 1,190 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Riva surname

From Italian, Catalan, and Spanish surname for someone who lives near a shore, from riva (“shore”).

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Riva» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 3,550 people named Riva 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 map

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 1,561
Santa Fe 511
Córdoba 377
City of Buenos Aires 311
Mendoza 159
La Pampa 101
Tucumán 77
Río Negro 61

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

898 people named Riva live in Switzerland.

They live in 18 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Ticino.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Ticino 452
Vaud 73
Zurich 71
Geneva 43
Lucerne 42
Bern 36
Aargau 34
Basel-Landschaft 30

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 France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 813 people named Riva.

182 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 74 départements, most often Paris.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they were born

Born outside France 182
Paris 45
Alpes-Maritimes 42
Lot-et-Garonne 36
Doubs 33
Yvelines 31
Vosges 25
Bas-Rhin 23
Haute-Garonne 22

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In the Nordic population registers

44 people named Riva are counted in Finland and Sweden.

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

Finland (2026) 22
Sweden (2022) 22

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

Riva in American newspapers,
1913–1944.

Newspaper page from El Paso Herald carrying the name Riva
El Paso Herald 1913-07-08
Newspaper page from La Prensa carrying the name Riva
La Prensa 1920-02-23
Newspaper page from The American Citizen carrying the name Riva
The American Citizen 1942-10-12

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 76,557 pages in all carry the name.

Who carried it

People named Riva,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Pietro Riva
    Pietro Riva 1809–1867 · politician
  • Alberto Riva
    Alberto Riva 1848–1924 · engineer
  • Oreste Riva
    Oreste Riva 1860–1936 · composer
  • Scipione Riva-Rocci
    Scipione Riva-Rocci 1863–1937 · physician
  • Isabella Riva
    Isabella Riva 1887–1985 · actor

Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 225 lives in all are documented under this name.

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Riva.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Riva 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.

See what a volume holds
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