Find out how popular the last name Alfano is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Alfano.

Alfano, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Alfano surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Alfano in America

Alfano is the 7088th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Alfano surname appeared 4,724 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Alfano.

We can also compare 2010 data for Alfano to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Alfano

The surname Alfano has its origins in Italy, specifically in the southern regions of Campania and Calabria, where it first emerged during the medieval period. The name is believed to be derived from the medieval Italian personal name "Alfano," which itself stems from the Germanic name "Alfwin" or "Alpwin," meaning "noble friend" or "elf friend."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Alfano can be found in the historic Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of charters and deeds from the Benedictine monastery of Cava de' Tirreni in Campania, dating back to the 11th century. This document mentions individuals with the surname Alfano, suggesting the name's presence in the region during that time.

In the 13th century, the Alfano surname appears in various records and documents from the Kingdom of Naples and the surrounding areas. Notable individuals bearing this name include Giacomo Alfano, a renowned jurist and legal scholar from Salerno, who lived in the late 12th and early 13th centuries.

During the Renaissance period, the Alfano family gained prominence in the city of Naples, where they were involved in various professions, including law, medicine, and the arts. One notable figure was Battista Alfano, a renowned philosopher and humanist who lived between 1505 and 1573.

In the 17th century, the Alfano surname is associated with the town of Grottaminarda in the province of Avellino, where a branch of the family settled and established itself. Tommaso Alfano, born in 1658, was a prominent Catholic prelate who served as the Bishop of Sarno from 1707 until his death in 1725.

The 18th century saw the rise of several distinguished individuals bearing the Alfano name, including Michelangelo Alfano (1700-1768), a celebrated painter from Naples known for his religious and mythological works, and Gaetano Alfano (1741-1815), a prominent lawyer and judge from the same city.

As the surname spread across Italy and beyond, other notable figures emerged, such as the Italian-American sculptor Vincenzo Alfano (1835-1923), renowned for his public monuments and sculptures adorning various cities in the United States and Italy.

Throughout its history, the Alfano surname has been associated with various place names and locations, including the town of Alfano in the province of Salerno, which may have contributed to the surname's origins or served as a place of residence for early bearers of the name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Alfano

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Alfano.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Alfano was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Alfano has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Alfano was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Alfano, please contact us.

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