2000
#7,038
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,389
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.63
Rare Last name
Campa
An Italian toponymic surname referring to someone who lived in or near fields or open country.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,957 Americans carry the last name Campa. That puts it at #6,300 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 57,538 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Campa 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
6.0K
1 in 57,538
Census rank
#6,300
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,195 bearers of the surname Campa in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6300th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Campa, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.4%. The next largest groups are White (9.5%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Campa
The surname Campa is believed to have originated in Italy, with roots dating back to the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Italian word "campo," meaning "field" or "open land." This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived or worked in a rural area or on a farm.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Campa surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval documents from the Cava de' Tirreni region of Campania, Italy. In this collection, dated around the 11th century, there are references to individuals with the surname Campa.
Another notable historical reference is the Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Italiana, a register of Italian noble families compiled in the 16th century. This book includes several entries for families with the surname Campa, indicating their noble status and origins.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Campa. One of the earliest was Benedetto Campa, an Italian painter who lived in the 15th century and was known for his religious works. Another was Pietro Campa, a 16th-century Italian architect and engineer who contributed to the design and construction of several notable buildings in Naples.
In the 18th century, Giovanbattista Campa was an Italian mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics. He was born in 1724 and died in 1798.
Moving forward to the 19th century, Giuseppe Campa was an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament. He was born in 1840 and died in 1914.
Finally, in the 20th century, Riccardo Campa was an Italian sculptor and artist known for his avant-garde works. He was born in 1905 and died in 1994.
While the surname Campa has its roots in Italy, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including other European countries and the Americas, as a result of migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Campa
Among Census respondents with the surname Campa, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.4%. The next largest groups are White (9.5%) and Two or More Races (0.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Campa 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 Campa surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino89.4% · 4,646
- White9.5% · 493
- Two or more races0.5% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
- Black or African American0.2% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Campa
Campa 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
#6,022
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,709
+1,320 bearers (+30.1%)
Per 100,000 1.94
Rank movement Up 1,016 places
2020
#6,300
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,195
-514 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 1.74
Rank movement Down 278 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,038 | 4,389 | 1.63 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,022 | 5,709 | 1.94 | +1,320 bearers (+30.1%) | Up 1,016 places |
| 2020 | #6,300 | 5,195 | 1.74 | -514 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 278 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 Campa 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 | #6,022 | #6,300 | -4.6% |
| Count | 5,709 | 5,195 | -9.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.94 | 1.74 | -10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Campa bearers went from 5,709 to 5,195 (-9.0% change). The surname moved down 278 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,022 to #6,300.
FAQ
Campa surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Campa?
Name Census estimates that about 5,957 living Americans carry the surname Campa. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 57,538 residents.
How common is Campa?
Campa ranks #6,300 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.74 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,195 people with the surname Campa. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,957), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.74 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Campa.
Has Campa become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Campa went from 5,709 recorded bearers to 5,195. That is a decrease of 514 (-9.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,022 to #6,300.
What does the Census say about the background of Campa?
Among Census respondents with the surname Campa, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 89.4%. The next largest groups are White (9.5%) and Two or More Races (0.5%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Campa in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (4,646 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Campa appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (89.4%), White (9.5%), Two or More Races (0.5%). 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 Campa (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 Campa mean?
An Italian toponymic surname referring to someone who lived in or near fields or open country. 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 Campa (1.74 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 Campa?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.