2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Amalfi
An Italian surname derived from the coastal town of Amalfi in southern Italy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Amalfi. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Amalfi 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Amalfi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Amalfi, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Amalfi
The surname Amalfi is of Italian origin, deriving from the town of Amalfi located on the Amalfi Coast in the region of Campania. The town's name is believed to come from the ancient Greek word "amalphiteia," meaning "a group of trees." This connection to nature and the Mediterranean landscape is reflected in the surname's origins.
Amalfi has a rich historical legacy dating back to the 6th century when it was an independent maritime republic and a powerful trading center. The surname Amalfi likely emerged during this period, as surnames became more prevalent in Italy starting in the 11th century. It may have been initially used to identify individuals from the town or associated with its naval and mercantile activities.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Amalfi can be found in the 14th century work "Cronache di Napoli" by Gian Villani, where he mentions an individual named Girolamo Amalfi, a merchant and diplomat from the town. This suggests that the surname was already established by that time.
In the 15th century, the name appears in the records of the Republic of Venice, with Andrea Amalfi being a prominent merchant and shipowner who conducted trade with the Levant. His son, Giacomo Amalfi, was a respected navigator and cartographer who produced notable maps of the Mediterranean region.
During the Renaissance, the Amalfi surname gained further prominence with the artist Agostino Amalfi (c. 1490-1570), known for his frescoes in churches and palaces throughout Italy. His contemporaries included the architect Raffaele Amalfi (c. 1500-1580), who designed several notable buildings in Naples.
In the 18th century, the surname was carried by the philosopher and jurist Gaetano Amalfi (1744-1823), who contributed to the development of legal theory and served as a judge in the Kingdom of Naples.
Another notable figure was the archaeologist and historian Vincenzo Amalfi (1802-1878), who conducted extensive research on the ancient ruins of Pompeii and Herculaneum, making significant contributions to the understanding of those sites.
While the surname Amalfi is not among the most common in Italy today, it continues to carry a rich legacy rooted in the history and culture of the Amalfi Coast region, reflecting the town's importance as a maritime and trading center in the past.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Amalfi
Among Census respondents with the surname Amalfi, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Amalfi 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 Amalfi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.8% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino12.5% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Amalfi
Amalfi 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
#135,593
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
+20 bearers (+19.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 10,418 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-12 bearers (-9.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,361 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 | #135,593 | 124 | 0.04 | +20 bearers (+19.2%) | Up 10,418 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.7%) | Down 12,361 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 Amalfi 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 | #135,593 | #147,954 | -9.1% |
| Count | 124 | 112 | -9.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Amalfi bearers went from 124 to 112 (-9.7% change). The surname moved down 12,361 positions in the national ranking, going from #135,593 to #147,954.
FAQ
Amalfi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Amalfi?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Amalfi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Amalfi?
Amalfi ranks #147,954 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 112 people with the surname Amalfi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), 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 Amalfi.
Has Amalfi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Amalfi went from 124 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 12 (-9.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #135,593 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Amalfi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Amalfi, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (12.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Amalfi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.8% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Amalfi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.8%), Hispanic (12.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.8%). 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 Amalfi (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 Amalfi mean?
An Italian surname derived from the coastal town of Amalfi in southern Italy. 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 Amalfi (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 Amalfi?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.