2000
#16,859
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,558
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.58
Rare Last name
Calo
Habitational surname indicating someone from a location called Calo.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,357 Americans carry the last name Calo. That puts it at #14,034 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 145,420 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Calo 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 145,420
Census rank
#14,034
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,055 bearers of the surname Calo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14034th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Calo, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (38.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (9.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Calo
The surname CALO has its origins in the Italian language and can be traced back to the 14th century in the region of Tuscany, Italy. The name is derived from the Italian word "calo," which means "descent" or "lowering," possibly referring to someone who lived in a valley or at the foot of a hill.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name CALO can be found in the archives of the city of Florence, where a certain Giovanni Calo was mentioned in a document dated 1387. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
In the 15th century, the name CALO appeared in several Florentine tax records, indicating that members of this family were involved in various professions and trades within the city. One notable individual was Filippo Calo, a skilled artisan who specialized in the production of fine ceramics, born in 1422.
As the centuries progressed, the CALO surname spread to other regions of Italy, particularly in the central and southern parts of the country. In the 16th century, a branch of the family settled in the city of Naples, where they became involved in the thriving maritime trade.
One of the most notable figures bearing the CALO surname was Giovanni Battista Calo, a renowned naval captain and explorer who lived from 1540 to 1612. He is credited with mapping several previously uncharted islands in the Mediterranean Sea and playing a crucial role in establishing trade routes between Italy and the Levant.
In the 17th century, the CALO name gained prominence in the field of the arts, with several notable painters and sculptors emerging from this family. One such individual was Antonio Calo, born in 1628 in Rome, who was celebrated for his exquisite religious paintings and frescoes adorning several churches in the Eternal City.
Another noteworthy figure was Giacomo Calo, a military strategist and engineer who lived from 1680 to 1752. He was instrumental in the design and construction of several fortifications and defensive structures throughout the Italian peninsula, contributing significantly to the military architecture of his time.
As the CALO surname spread beyond Italy's borders, it found its way to other European countries and eventually to the Americas. While the origins of the name can be traced back to Tuscany, the CALO family has left an indelible mark on various aspects of history, from exploration and trade to the arts and military engineering.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Calo
Among Census respondents with the surname Calo, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (38.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (9.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Calo 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 Calo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White49.9% · 1,025
- Hispanic or Latino38.1% · 782
- Asian and Pacific Islander9.5% · 196
- Two or more races1.7% · 34
- Black or African American0.6% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Calo
Calo 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
#15,370
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,908
+350 bearers (+22.5%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Up 1,489 places
2020
#14,034
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,055
+147 bearers (+7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Up 1,336 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,859 | 1,558 | 0.58 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,370 | 1,908 | 0.65 | +350 bearers (+22.5%) | Up 1,489 places |
| 2020 | #14,034 | 2,055 | 0.69 | +147 bearers (+7.7%) | Up 1,336 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 Calo 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 | #15,370 | #14,034 | 8.7% |
| Count | 1,908 | 2,055 | 7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.65 | 0.69 | 5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Calo bearers went from 1,908 to 2,055 (+7.7% change). The surname moved up 1,336 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,370 to #14,034.
FAQ
Calo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Calo?
Name Census estimates that about 2,357 living Americans carry the surname Calo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 145,420 residents.
How common is Calo?
Calo ranks #14,034 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 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 2,055 people with the surname Calo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,357), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 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 Calo.
Has Calo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Calo went from 1,908 recorded bearers to 2,055. That is an increase of 147 (+7.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,370 to #14,034.
What does the Census say about the background of Calo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Calo, the largest self-reported group is White at 49.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (38.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (9.5%). 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 Calo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 49.9% (1,025 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Calo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (49.9%), Hispanic (38.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (9.5%). 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 Calo (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 Calo mean?
Habitational surname indicating someone from a location called Calo. 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 Calo (0.69 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 Calo?
See how many people have the last name Calo on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.