2010
#121,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 142
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Barrara
A surname of Spanish origin associated with a person from the Castilian town of Barrara.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Barrara. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Barrara 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Barrara in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrara, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Barrara
The surname Barrara is believed to have originated in Italy, specifically in the region of Sicily. It likely emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 11th or 12th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Italian word "barrara," which means "barrel maker" or "cooper," suggesting that the earliest bearers of this surname may have been involved in the craft of making barrels.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Barrara can be found in a document dated 1265, which mentions a certain "Giovanni Barrara" from the town of Palermo, Sicily. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by the 13th century.
In the 14th century, the name appears in a manuscript from the city of Messina, where a certain "Nicolo Barrara" is mentioned as a merchant involved in the trade of wine and olive oil. This provides further evidence of the name's connection to the barrel-making profession.
During the Renaissance period, the Barrara family gained some prominence in Sicily. One notable figure was Antonio Barrara (1460-1532), a scholar and philosopher from Catania, who wrote extensively on the works of Aristotle and Plato.
In the 17th century, records show a branch of the Barrara family settling in Naples, where they became involved in the city's vibrant artistic and cultural scene. One member of this branch, Giovanni Battista Barrara (1618-1679), was a renowned painter and sculptor who worked on various commissions for churches and noble families in Naples.
Another notable figure was Vincenzo Barrara (1770-1846), a military leader from Palermo who played a significant role in the Sicilian Revolution against the Bourbon monarchy in the early 19th century.
As the Barrara family spread across Italy and beyond, the name underwent various spelling variations, such as Barraro, Barrera, and Barrera. Some of these variations may have been influenced by the Spanish language, as Sicily was ruled by the Spanish for several centuries.
Throughout its history, the surname Barrara has maintained a strong connection to its Italian roots and the barrel-making profession that gave rise to its origins.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Barrara
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrara, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Barrara 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 Barrara surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino89.6% · 103
- White7.0% · 8
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Barrara
Barrara appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-27 bearers (-19.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 24,167 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #121,590 | 142 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -27 bearers (-19.0%) | Down 24,167 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 Barrara 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 | #121,590 | #145,757 | -19.9% |
| Count | 142 | 115 | -19.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -23.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Barrara bearers went from 142 to 115 (-19.0% change). The surname moved down 24,167 positions in the national ranking, going from #121,590 to #145,757.
FAQ
Barrara surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Barrara?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Barrara. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Barrara?
Barrara ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Barrara. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Barrara.
Has Barrara become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Barrara went from 142 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 27 (-19.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #121,590 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Barrara?
Among Census respondents with the surname Barrara, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.6%. The next largest groups are White (7.0%) and Two or More Races (1.7%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Barrara in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.6% (103 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Barrara appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (89.6%), White (7.0%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Barrara (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 Barrara mean?
A surname of Spanish origin associated with a person from the Castilian town of Barrara. 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 Barrara (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 common is the surname Barrara?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Barrara? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.