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

Carlo, 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 Carlo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Carlo in America

Carlo is the 8395th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Carlo surname appeared 3,942 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Carlo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Carlo 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 Carlo

The surname Carlo is of Italian origin and can be traced back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian personal name Carlo, which is the Italian form of the Germanic name Karl, meaning "free man" or "husband." The name was originally used as a first name but later adopted as a surname.

Carlo is a widespread surname in Italy, particularly in the regions of Tuscany, Lombardy, and Veneto, where it has been recorded since the 12th century. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Codice Diplomatico Longobardo, a collection of historical documents from the Lombard period in Italy, dating back to the 8th century.

During the Renaissance period, several notable figures bore the surname Carlo. One of the most famous was Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793), an Italian playwright and librettist who was a leading figure in the Italian literary movement known as the Commedia dell'Arte.

Another notable Carlo was Carlo Borromeo (1538-1584), a Italian Catholic cardinal and Archbishop of Milan. He was known for his reforms and charitable works, and he was canonized as a saint in 1610.

In the 19th century, Carlo Collodi (1826-1890), the Italian writer and journalist best known for his children's book "The Adventures of Pinocchio," was born under the name Carlo Lorenzini and later adopted the pen name Collodi.

Moving into the 20th century, Carlo Levi (1902-1975) was an Italian writer, painter, and political activist who gained fame for his memoir "Christ Stopped at Eboli," which explored the poverty and social injustice in Southern Italy during the fascist era.

Another notable figure was Carlo Ponti (1912-2007), an Italian film producer and husband of the famous actress Sophia Loren. He produced several successful films throughout his career, including "Doctor Zhivago" and "Blow-Up."

While the surname Carlo has its roots in Italy, it has also been adopted in other countries, particularly in areas with significant Italian immigration, such as the United States and Argentina.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Carlo

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

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

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

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