Benna last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Benna

An Italian surname derived from a region or village called "Benna".

Benna, 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 Benna surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Benna in America

Benna is the 86645th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Benna surname appeared 215 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Benna.

We can also compare 2010 data for Benna 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 86645 71808 18.73%
Count 215 253 -16.24%
Proportion per 100k 0.07 0.09 -25.00%

The history of the last name Benna

The surname Benna originated in Italy, specifically in the northern regions of Piedmont and Lombardy. It is believed to have derived from the Old Italian word "benna," which means "basket" or "container." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who made or sold baskets, or someone associated with a particular type of basket or container.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Benna can be traced back to the 13th century. In 1279, a document from the town of Vercelli mentioned a certain "Guglielmo Benna," indicating the presence of the name in that area during that time period.

Historical records also show that the name Benna appeared in various forms and spellings, such as Benna, Benna, and Bennati, among others. This variation was common in the medieval era, as spelling conventions were not yet standardized.

One notable historical figure bearing the surname Benna was Giovanni Benna (1570-1625), an Italian jurist and lawyer from the city of Pavia. He wrote several legal treatises and served as a professor of law at the University of Pavia.

Another individual of note was Bartolomeo Benna (1620-1689), a Baroque painter from the town of Genoa. He is known for his religious artworks, particularly his altarpieces and frescoes adorning various churches in Genoa and the surrounding region.

In the 18th century, Giuseppe Benna (1723-1788) was a prominent architect from Turin. He designed several notable buildings in the city, including the Palazzo Chiablese and the Church of San Francesco da Paola.

The 19th century saw the birth of Giacomo Benna (1859-1925), an Italian politician and journalist from Piedmont. He served as a member of the Italian Parliament and was actively involved in the workers' movement and socialist causes.

Another notable figure from the late 19th century was Pietro Benna (1870-1937), a sculptor and artist from Lombardy. His works, primarily in marble and bronze, can be found in various museums and public spaces throughout Italy.

While the surname Benna is not among the most common in Italy, it has a rich history and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including legal scholars, artists, architects, and politicians.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Benna

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

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 Benna was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 91.16% 196
Non-Hispanic Black Only 5.12% 11
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Benna has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 91.16% 94.07% -3.14%
Black 5.12% 3.56% 35.94%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 0.00% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% 0.00% (S)%

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 Benna was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Benna last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on July 27, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/benna-surname-popularity/.

"Benna last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/benna-surname-popularity/. Accessed 27 July, 2024

Benna last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/benna-surname-popularity/.

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