2000
#7,719
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,973
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.47
Rare Last name
Battista
Derived from the Latin name Baptista, meaning "baptist" or "one who baptizes," originally referring to John the Baptist.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,239 Americans carry the last name Battista. That puts it at #8,546 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 80,857 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Battista 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Battista with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.2K
1 in 80,857
Census rank
#8,546
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,697 bearers of the surname Battista in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8546th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Battista, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Battista
The surname BATTISTA originated in Italy during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian word "battista," which means "baptist" or "one who baptizes." The name was likely given to someone who either worked as a Baptist preacher or had some connection to the church or religious order associated with the Baptist tradition.
The earliest recorded instances of the BATTISTA surname can be traced back to the 13th century in various Italian regions, such as Tuscany and Veneto. In some cases, the name was also spelled as "Batista" or "Baptista," reflecting the variations in regional dialects and spelling conventions of the time.
One notable historical figure with the BATTISTA surname was Giovanni Battista Della Porta, an Italian scholar, and polymath who lived from 1535 to 1615. He made significant contributions to various fields, including natural philosophy, cryptography, and the study of optics. His work, "Magiae Naturalis" (Natural Magic), published in 1589, was an influential treatise on experimental science and natural phenomena.
Another individual of note was Pomponio Battista, an Italian Renaissance painter who lived from around 1505 to 1575. He was active in Udine, a city in the Friuli-Venezia Giulia region of northeastern Italy, and is known for his religious paintings and frescoes adorning churches in the area.
In the 17th century, Girolamo Battista Alberti, an Italian architect and theorist, made significant contributions to the development of Renaissance architecture. Born in 1404 in Venice, his treatise "De re aedificatoria" (On the Art of Building) is considered a seminal work on architectural theory and design principles.
During the 18th century, Giovanni Battista Piranesi, an Italian artist and architect, gained renown for his etchings and engravings depicting architectural ruins and imaginary landscapes. Born in 1720 in Venice, his intricate and detailed works, such as the "Vedute di Roma" (Views of Rome), are highly regarded for their artistic and technical mastery.
Lastly, in the 19th century, Giovanni Battista Belzoni, an Italian explorer and pioneer in the field of Egyptology, made significant contributions to the study of ancient Egyptian monuments. Born in 1778 in Padua, he is best known for his excavations and documentation of the rock-cut temples of Abu Simbel and the Second Pyramid of Giza.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Battista
Among Census respondents with the surname Battista, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Battista 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 Battista surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 3,405
- Hispanic or Latino4.6% · 169
- Two or more races2.2% · 81
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 31
- Black or African American0.3% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Battista
Battista 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
#7,997
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,136
+163 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 278 places
2020
#8,546
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,697
-439 bearers (-10.6%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 549 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,719 | 3,973 | 1.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,997 | 4,136 | 1.40 | +163 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 278 places |
| 2020 | #8,546 | 3,697 | 1.24 | -439 bearers (-10.6%) | Down 549 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 Battista 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 | #7,997 | #8,546 | -6.9% |
| Count | 4,136 | 3,697 | -10.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.40 | 1.24 | -11.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Battista bearers went from 4,136 to 3,697 (-10.6% change). The surname moved down 549 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,997 to #8,546.
FAQ
Battista surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Battista?
Name Census estimates that about 4,239 living Americans carry the surname Battista. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 80,857 residents.
How common is Battista?
Battista ranks #8,546 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.24 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,697 people with the surname Battista. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,239), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.24 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Battista.
Has Battista become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Battista went from 4,136 recorded bearers to 3,697. That is a decrease of 439 (-10.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,997 to #8,546.
What does the Census say about the background of Battista?
Among Census respondents with the surname Battista, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.6%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Battista in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (3,405 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Battista appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (4.6%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Battista (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 Battista mean?
Derived from the Latin name Baptista, meaning "baptist" or "one who baptizes," originally referring to John the Baptist. 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 Battista (1.24 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 Battista?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.