Skip to content
Name Lineage

    The surname Riva

    A surname, carried by 1,271 people in the United States.

    2 syllables Soundex R100

    Riva: #20,780 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#10Martinez#100Jimenez#1,000Archer Riva #20,780, 1,271 people Riva: #20,780 of 162,253 surnames in the 2010 US Census #1Smith#160,975Doriott#100Jimenez Riva #20,780, 1,271 people
    Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Riva is more common than 87.2% of them.

    Origin

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

    Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

    How common it is

    2010 US Census

    There were 1,271 people named Riva in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 242,915 Americans. That is up 6.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 1,190.

    #20,780
    rank among US surnames
    1,271
    people in 2010
    0.4
    per 100,000 Americans
    +6.8%
    change since 2000 (was #20,665)

    Who is named Riva

    Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

    74% of people named Riva identified as white (not Hispanic), 23% as Hispanic or Latino (any race) and 1.5% as Asian and Pacific Islander.

    • White (not Hispanic) 74%
    • Hispanic or Latino (any race) 23%
    • Asian and Pacific Islander 1.5%
    • Two or more races 1.2%
    The Census suppresses very small shares to protect privacy; Black, Native American are not shown.

    Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

    Famous Rivas

    1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

    • Maria Riva
      American actress (1924–2025)

    Questions

    Where does the surname Riva come from?
    From Italian, Catalan, and Spanish surname for someone who lives near a shore, from riva (“shore”).
    How common is the surname Riva?
    1,271 people in the United States had the surname Riva in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 242,915 Americans. It ranked 20,780th of 162,253 surnames.
    What ethnicity is the surname Riva?
    In the 2010 Census, 74% of people named Riva identified as white (not Hispanic), and 23% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).
    Who is the most famous person named Riva?
    Maria Riva, American actress (1924–2025).
    Where is the surname Riva most common?
    Wikidata records people named Riva in the United States.
    Is the surname Riva getting more or less common?
    More common. 1,190 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 1,271 in 2010, up 6.8%.