2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Addamo
Sicilian occupational surname referring to a person who tamed or trained horses.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Addamo. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Addamo 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Addamo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Addamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Black (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Addamo
The surname Addamo is of Italian origin, specifically from the southern regions of Sicily and Calabria. It is derived from the Greek name "Adam," which means "earth" or "man of the soil." The name likely originated in the 11th or 12th century during the Norman conquest of southern Italy, when Greek and Italian cultures intermingled.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Registers of the Chancery of the Kingdom of Sicily from the 13th century, where a nobleman named Roberto Addamo is mentioned. Another early reference is in the Codex Diplomaticus Regni Siciliae, a collection of medieval documents from Sicily, which includes records of an Addamo family residing in the town of Milazzo in the 15th century.
The name Addamo is closely associated with the town of Mistretta in the province of Messina, Sicily. This town is believed to be the ancestral homeland of many individuals bearing this surname. The name may have evolved from the older place name "Mistretta di Addamo," reflecting the connection between the surname and the locality.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Addamo was Girolamo Addamo, a Sicilian philosopher and theologian who lived in the 16th century (c. 1510-1585). Another notable figure was Vincenzo Addamo, a prominent lawyer and politician from Mistretta, who served as a member of the Sicilian Parliament in the late 19th century (1832-1910).
In the 18th century, Giuseppe Addamo (1719-1789) was a renowned painter from Palermo, Sicily, known for his religious works and portraiture. More recently, Sebastiano Addamo (1898-1972) was an Italian journalist and author who wrote extensively about the history and culture of Sicily.
Another prominent individual with the surname Addamo was Nicola Addamo (1856-1934), an Italian sculptor and artist from Calabria. His works can be found in various churches and public spaces throughout southern Italy.
Throughout history, the surname Addamo has maintained a strong presence in the southern regions of Italy, particularly in Sicily and Calabria, reflecting its Greek and Norman influences from centuries past.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Addamo
Among Census respondents with the surname Addamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Black (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Addamo 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 Addamo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.8% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino7.6% · 8
- Black or African American4.8% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Addamo
Addamo 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
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
+19 bearers (+18.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 9,562 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-18 bearers (-14.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,540 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #146,011 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+18.3%) | Up 9,562 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -18 bearers (-14.6%) | Down 16,540 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 Addamo 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 | #136,449 | #152,989 | -12.1% |
| Count | 123 | 105 | -14.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Addamo bearers went from 123 to 105 (-14.6% change). The surname moved down 16,540 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #152,989.
FAQ
Addamo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Addamo?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Addamo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Addamo?
Addamo ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 105 people with the surname Addamo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Addamo.
Has Addamo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Addamo went from 123 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 18 (-14.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Addamo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Addamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.6%) and Black (4.8%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Addamo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.8% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Addamo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.8%), Hispanic (7.6%), Black (4.8%). 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 Addamo (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 Addamo mean?
Sicilian occupational surname referring to a person who tamed or trained horses. 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 Addamo (0.04 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 many Americans have the surname Addamo?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.