2000
#1,621
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,257
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.51
Uncommon Last name
Caruso
An Italian occupational surname referring to someone who operated a cart or wagon.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 22,293 Americans carry the last name Caruso. That puts it at #1,807 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.50 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 15,375 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Caruso 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Caruso with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
22K
1 in 15,375
Census rank
#1,807
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
19K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 19,441 bearers of the surname Caruso in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.50 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1807th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Caruso, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Caruso
The surname Caruso originates from Italy and is believed to have derived from the Medieval Italian personal name Caruso, which itself comes from the Late Latin name Carus, meaning "dear" or "beloved." The earliest recorded use of the name Caruso can be traced back to the 12th century in Sicily and the surrounding regions of southern Italy.
During the Middle Ages, many Italians adopted surnames derived from personal names, often in the form of diminutives or pet names. The suffix "-uso" was commonly added to create these diminutive forms, leading to surnames like Caruso.
One of the earliest known references to the surname Caruso appears in a 14th-century document from the city of Palermo, Sicily, which mentions a certain Nicolò Caruso. In the 15th century, records show the presence of the Caruso family in the town of Sorrento, near Naples.
Over the centuries, variations of the spelling emerged, including Carusio, Carusi, and Caruzo, reflecting regional dialects and local pronunciation patterns. However, the modern standardized form of Caruso became predominant.
Some notable individuals bearing the surname Caruso throughout history include:
1. Enrico Caruso (1873-1921), a legendary Italian operatic tenor widely considered one of the greatest vocalists of all time.
2. Giovanni Caruso (1551-1630), an Italian architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Naples and its surroundings.
3. Renato Caruso (1924-2012), an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his work in the Commedia all'Italiana genre.
4. Tiberio Caruso (1780-1855), an Italian painter and art teacher who contributed to the Neoclassical and Romantic movements.
5. Alfredo Caruso (1865-1948), an Italian mathematician and physicist who made significant contributions to the study of algebraic surfaces.
While the Caruso surname is most prevalent in southern Italy, particularly in the regions of Sicily, Campania, and Calabria, it has also spread to other parts of the country and beyond due to migration patterns over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Caruso
Among Census respondents with the surname Caruso, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Caruso 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 Caruso surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 17,853
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 954
- Two or more races2.1% · 402
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 144
- Black or African American0.3% · 66
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 22
Timeline
Historical Census data for Caruso
Caruso 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
#1,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,367
+110 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 6.90
Rank movement Down 137 places
2020
#1,807
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,441
-926 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 6.50
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,621 | 20,257 | 7.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,758 | 20,367 | 6.90 | +110 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 137 places |
| 2020 | #1,807 | 19,441 | 6.50 | -926 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 49 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 Caruso 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 | #1,758 | #1,807 | -2.8% |
| Count | 20,367 | 19,441 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 6.90 | 6.50 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Caruso bearers went from 20,367 to 19,441 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,758 to #1,807.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Caruso
FAQ
Caruso surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Caruso?
Name Census estimates that about 22,293 living Americans carry the surname Caruso. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 15,375 residents.
How common is Caruso?
Caruso ranks #1,807 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.50 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 19,441 people with the surname Caruso. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (22,293), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.5 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.50 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Caruso.
Has Caruso become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Caruso went from 20,367 recorded bearers to 19,441. That is a decrease of 926 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,758 to #1,807.
What does the Census say about the background of Caruso?
Among Census respondents with the surname Caruso, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Caruso in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (17,853 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Caruso appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Hispanic (4.9%), Two or More Races (2.1%). 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 Caruso (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 Caruso mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to someone who operated a cart or wagon. 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 Caruso (6.50 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 have the last name Caruso?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Caruso is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.