2000
#135,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Caforio
Italian occupational surname meaning "coffee maker" or "coffee merchant."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Caforio. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Caforio 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Caforio in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Caforio, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Caforio
The surname Caforio has its origins in Italy, specifically in the southern regions of Calabria and Sicily. The name is believed to date back to the 13th or 14th century. It is derived from the Italian word "caforio," which means a barn or a storehouse for agricultural products. This suggests that the name may have originated among families involved in farming or agricultural activities during that time period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Caforio can be found in a document from the 16th century, which mentions a family bearing this surname living in the town of Reggio Calabria, located in the region of Calabria. The document, dated 1587, refers to a certain Giovanni Caforio, who was a landowner and farmer.
The Caforio name has also appeared in various historical records and manuscripts throughout the centuries. For example, in the 17th century, a merchant named Antonio Caforio is mentioned in a trade document from the city of Palermo, Sicily. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its original farming roots and was also associated with commercial activities.
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname Caforio was Francesco Caforio, a philosopher and scholar from Naples who lived from 1720 to 1795. He was known for his writings on metaphysics and ethics, and his works were widely read and discussed during his lifetime.
Another prominent individual with the Caforio surname was Giuseppe Caforio, a 19th-century painter from Calabria who was renowned for his landscapes and religious works. He lived from 1810 to 1879 and his paintings can still be found in various churches and galleries throughout southern Italy.
In more recent times, one of the most famous individuals bearing the Caforio name was Pasquale Caforio, a renowned Italian-American chef and restaurateur who lived from 1892 to 1967. He was born in Calabria but immigrated to the United States in the early 20th century and opened several successful Italian restaurants in New York City, helping to popularize Italian cuisine in America.
The surname Caforio has also been associated with various place names throughout Italy, particularly in the regions of Calabria and Sicily. For example, there is a small town called Caforio in the province of Reggio Calabria, which may have derived its name from the local families bearing this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Caforio
Among Census respondents with the surname Caforio, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Caforio 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 Caforio surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.0% · 114
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Caforio
Caforio 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+16 bearers (+14.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,227 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
-10 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,439 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #135,837 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+14.0%) | Up 5,227 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 11,439 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 Caforio 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 | #130,610 | #142,049 | -8.8% |
| Count | 130 | 120 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Caforio bearers went from 130 to 120 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 11,439 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #142,049.
FAQ
Caforio surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Caforio?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Caforio. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Caforio?
Caforio ranks #142,049 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 120 people with the surname Caforio. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), 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 Caforio.
Has Caforio become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Caforio went from 130 recorded bearers to 120. That is a decrease of 10 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Caforio?
Among Census respondents with the surname Caforio, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Caforio in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.0% (114 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Caforio appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.0%), Hispanic (3.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Caforio (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 Caforio mean?
Italian occupational surname meaning "coffee maker" or "coffee merchant." 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 Caforio (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 people are called Caforio?
If you just want to know how common the surname Caforio is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.