Purvis is used as a family name or surname in Ireland, Scotland, England. It is 6 characters long in length.

Family Name / Last Name: Purvis
No. of characters: 6
Origin: Ireland, Scotland, England
Meaning:

Purvis is variation of Purves. A place in the shire of Berwick.

Purvis is the form of Purves. See Purvis - According to the account given in B.L.G., the Purvises of Darsham, county of Suffolk, originated from the family of Purvis "of that Ilk " in Scotland. "That Ilk," however, does not appear to be identified, although the name Purvoys, or Perves, is found in ancient records of the Lowland counties. The name is more likely to be derived from the Anglo-Norman pervis, or parvise, which Kelham defines as, "the outer court of a palace or great house. Such was the place in Palace Yard, near Westminster Hall, mentioned by Fortescue, De Laud. Leg. Ang. c. 51; and Dugdale also takes notice of the Pervyse of Pawles."

Dweller at, or frequenter at, or near, a porch, generally of a church.

According to the account given in B.L.G., the Purvises of Darsham, county of Suffolk, originated from the family of Purvis "of that Ilk " in Scotland. "That Ilk," however, does not appear to be identified, although the name Purvoys, or Perves, is found in ancient records of the Lowland counties. The name is more likely to be derived from the Anglo-Norman pervis, or parvise, which Kelham defines as, "the outer court of a palace or great house. Such was the place in Palace Yard, near Westminster Hall, mentioned by Fortescue, De Laud. Leg. Ang. c. 51; and Dugdale also takes notice of the Pervyse of Pawles."

How popular is Purvis?

Purvis is common in United States, England, Australia, Canada, Scotland, New Zealand, Northern Ireland, Israel, Netherlands.

Purvis is ranked 16957 on our list.

Despite the fact that the number of Purvis bearers increased by 1.86 per cent in 2010 US census to 16686 since 2000, the surname slipped by 149 spots and ranked at 2177. The last name was found in around 6 per hundred thousand population. Please refer to following table for race and ethnicity.

Race 2010 2000
White 78.95 81.56
Black 16.55 15.25
Hispanic or Latino 1.93 1.31
Others 1.82 1.25
Asian and Native Hawaiian
& Other Pacific Islander		 0.41 0.36
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.34 0.27
Purvis is quite popular family name mostly used in United States however Isle of Man lie ahead in terms of density. Around 32751 person has been found who wears Purvis as their family name. Purvis is used widely across the globe. More detailed information can be found below:
RankCountryCount
Countries with ten thousands of Purvis:
2,097 United States21,856
Countries with thousands of Purvis:
1,613 England5,090
1,950 Australia1,984
3,333 Canada1,496
Countries with hundreds of Purvis:
1,341 Scotland565
1,447 New Zealand538
1,161 Northern Ireland287
6,234 Israel182
24,214 Netherlands102
Countries with low frequency i.e., 50 - 100:
33,533 Argentina96
46,403 South Africa88
6,177 Portugal75
4,540 Wales64
Countries with very low frequency i.e., 10 - 50:
575 Isle of Man30
7,171 Ireland29
200,772 France23
661 Seychelles23
767 Guernsey22
301,565 Thailand22
13,856 Singapore17
65,296 Spain15
1,520 Jersey14
636 Cayman Islands13
223,026 Germany12
Countries with very very low frequency i.e., 6 - 10:
47,258 Norway8
4,774 Hong Kong8
238,248 Philippines7
33,195 Chile7
486,533 Brazil6
Show Full Last Name Distribution

Immigrants to US

From Ireland

During the great famine, 23 years old joiner James Purvis who was residing in Scotland migrated to USA on February 22, 1849 by Arrick put out from Glasgow. George Purvis, aged 38, 39 years old Elizabeth Purvis, William Purvis (13), Peter Purvis (12), John Purvis (10), Elizabeth Purvis (8), George Purvis (7), 4 years old Christina Purvis, and 20 other Purvis around 57.14% of whom were workman while others worked as servant migrated to US.

Purvis Namesakes

  • John Purvis, former Conservative MEP for Mid Scotland and Fife and
  • Katharine Purvis, is best known as the lyricist for 'When the Saints Are Marching In'
  • Tom Purvis, British painter and commercial poster artist
  • John Gordon Purvis, John Gordon Purvis Jr
  • Robert Purvis, American abolitionist in the United States
  • Melvin Purvis, American law enforcement official and Federal Bureau of Investigation agent
  • Jack Purvis, American jazz musician
  • Jeff Purvis, former race car driver
  • Jeremy Purvis, Scottish Liberal Democrat politician
  • Jay Purvis, former model and television host
  • Hugh Purvis, United States Marine
  • Dawn Purvis, former Independent Unionist member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
  • Alston Purvis, American graphic designer, artist

Purvis Namesakes

  • John Purvis, former Conservative MEP for Mid Scotland and Fife and
  • Katharine Purvis, is best known as the lyricist for 'When the Saints Are Marching In'
  • Tom Purvis, British painter and commercial poster artist
  • John Gordon Purvis, John Gordon Purvis Jr
  • Robert Purvis, American abolitionist in the United States
  • Melvin Purvis, American law enforcement official and Federal Bureau of Investigation agent
  • Jack Purvis, American jazz musician
  • Jeff Purvis, former race car driver
  • Jeremy Purvis, Scottish Liberal Democrat politician
  • Jay Purvis, former model and television host
  • Hugh Purvis, United States Marine
  • Dawn Purvis, former Independent Unionist member of the Northern Ireland Assembly
  • Alston Purvis, American graphic designer, artist

Related Family Names: