2000
#13,613
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,045
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.76
Rare Last name
Brunetti
An Italian surname derived from the nickname "brunetto," meaning "little dark one" or "little brown-haired one."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,409 Americans carry the last name Brunetti. That puts it at #13,781 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 142,281 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brunetti 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
2.4K
1 in 142,281
Census rank
#13,781
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,101 bearers of the surname Brunetti in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13781st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brunetti, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brunetti
The surname Brunetti has its origins in Italy, where it first emerged during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian word "bruno," which means "brown" or "dark-haired." This suggests that the name was likely initially used as a nickname or descriptive term for someone with a dark complexion or hair color.
The earliest recorded instances of the Brunetti surname can be found in various historical documents from the 12th and 13th centuries. It appears in records from regions such as Tuscany, Lombardy, and Veneto, indicating its widespread use across different parts of Italy.
One notable early reference to the Brunetti name can be found in the "Codice Diplomatico Longobardo," a collection of documents from the Lombard period in Italian history, which dates back to the 8th century. However, the specific mention of the Brunetti surname is from a later period, likely the 12th or 13th century.
Throughout history, several individuals with the Brunetti surname have achieved notable prominence. One such figure was Filippo Brunetti (1595-1668), an Italian painter and architect from Rome who was known for his works in various churches and palaces across the city.
Another notable Brunetti was Giovanni Battista Brunetti (1801-1869), an Italian composer and violinist who gained recognition for his contributions to the development of violin technique and his compositions for the instrument.
In the literary realm, Antonio Brunetti (1805-1883) was an Italian novelist and poet from Venice who wrote works that explored the themes of love, nature, and the human condition.
Moving to more recent times, Mario Brunetti (1891-1962) was an Italian politician and lawyer who served as the Mayor of Rome from 1944 to 1946, playing a significant role in the city's reconstruction efforts after World War II.
Lastly, Vittorio Brunetti (1911-1997) was an Italian football player and manager who had a successful career both as a player for Lazio and as a coach for various Italian clubs, including Napoli and Roma.
While the Brunetti surname has its roots in Italy, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including other European countries and the Americas, as a result of migration and immigration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brunetti
Among Census respondents with the surname Brunetti, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Brunetti 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 Brunetti surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.3% · 1,856
- Hispanic or Latino7.1% · 149
- Two or more races2.8% · 59
- Black or African American1.0% · 22
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brunetti
Brunetti 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
#13,737
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,203
+158 bearers (+7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 124 places
2020
#13,781
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,101
-102 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 0.70
Rank movement Down 44 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,613 | 2,045 | 0.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,737 | 2,203 | 0.75 | +158 bearers (+7.7%) | Down 124 places |
| 2020 | #13,781 | 2,101 | 0.70 | -102 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 44 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 Brunetti 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 | #13,737 | #13,781 | -0.3% |
| Count | 2,203 | 2,101 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.70 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brunetti bearers went from 2,203 to 2,101 (-4.6% change). The surname moved down 44 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,737 to #13,781.
FAQ
Brunetti surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brunetti?
Name Census estimates that about 2,409 living Americans carry the surname Brunetti. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 142,281 residents.
How common is Brunetti?
Brunetti ranks #13,781 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.70 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 2,101 people with the surname Brunetti. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,409), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.70 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 Brunetti.
Has Brunetti become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brunetti went from 2,203 recorded bearers to 2,101. That is a decrease of 102 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,737 to #13,781.
What does the Census say about the background of Brunetti?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brunetti, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Brunetti in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.3% (1,856 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brunetti appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.3%), Hispanic (7.1%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Brunetti (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 Brunetti mean?
An Italian surname derived from the nickname "brunetto," meaning "little dark one" or "little brown-haired one." 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 Brunetti (0.70 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 people have the last name Brunetti?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Brunetti, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.