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

Cappa, 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 Cappa surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cappa in America

Cappa is the 30222nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cappa surname appeared 775 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 Cappa.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cappa 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.

The history of the last name Cappa

The surname Cappa originates from Italy, where it first emerged during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian word "cappa," which means "cape" or "cloak." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive surname given to someone who wore a distinctive cape or cloak, or perhaps someone who made or sold such garments.

The earliest known record of the name Cappa can be found in the historic city of Genoa, where a family bearing this surname was documented in the 13th century. The Cappa name was also present in other regions of northern Italy, including Lombardy and Piedmont, during the Middle Ages.

One notable early reference to the Cappa name is found in the "Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Italiana" (Book of Gold of the Italian Nobility), a historical record of noble Italian families compiled in the 16th century. This suggests that at least some branches of the Cappa family had achieved a certain level of prominence and social status by that time.

In the 14th century, a man named Giovanni Cappa (1290-1349) was a renowned scholar and physician from the town of Pavia. He authored several influential works on medicine and is considered one of the earliest proponents of the practice of dissection in medical education.

Another notable figure was Alessandro Cappa (1590-1654), an Italian architect and sculptor who contributed to the design and construction of several notable buildings in Rome, including the Palazzo Barberini and the Church of Sant'Andrea della Valle.

During the Renaissance period, the Cappa family produced several accomplished artists, including the painter Gian Battista Cappa (1573-1622) from Monza and the sculptor Girolamo Cappa (1603-1667) from Milan.

In the 18th century, Giambattista Cappa (1721-1799) was a prominent composer and music theorist from the city of Bergamo. He served as the maestro di cappella (chapel master) at various churches and composed several operas and sacred works.

While the Cappa surname has its roots in Italy, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, the earliest and most significant historical references to the name can be traced back to its Italian origins.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cappa

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

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 Cappa was:

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

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

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

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