2000
#148,244
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Cefola
An Italian surname derived from the word "cefalo" meaning head or chief.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Cefola. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cefola 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Cefola in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cefola, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cefola
The surname Cefola is believed to have originated in Italy, likely in the southern region of Campania, during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Italian word "cefalo," meaning "head" or "leader," possibly indicating that the name was given to someone who held a position of authority or leadership within their community.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cefola can be found in the Codice Diplomatico Barese, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bari, dating back to the 11th century. In this text, a person named Petrus Cefola is mentioned as a witness to a legal transaction in the year 1087.
In the 13th century, a nobleman named Guglielmo Cefola (c. 1220-1295) was a prominent figure in the court of King Charles I of Anjou, who ruled over the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily. Guglielmo was a trusted advisor and is recorded as having accompanied the king on several military campaigns.
The Cefola name also appears in the Venetian archives from the 15th century, where a merchant named Marco Cefola (c. 1430-1498) is mentioned as having traded in luxury goods between Venice and the eastern Mediterranean.
In the 16th century, a renowned painter from Naples, Antonio Cefola (c. 1520-1585), gained recognition for his religious works, some of which can still be seen in churches throughout southern Italy.
Another notable figure was the philosopher and theologian Francesco Cefola (1592-1662), who taught at the University of Naples and authored several influential texts on metaphysics and ethics.
As the centuries passed, the Cefola surname spread throughout Italy and beyond, with members of the family contributing to various fields, including literature, music, and politics. However, it is the name's origins in medieval southern Italy, possibly rooted in a position of leadership or authority, that remain at the heart of its historical significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cefola
Among Census respondents with the surname Cefola, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Cefola 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 Cefola surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.7% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 6
- Two or more races3.4% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cefola
Cefola 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+15 bearers (+14.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 6,136 places
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,162 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #148,244 | 102 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | +15 bearers (+14.7%) | Up 6,136 places |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 2,162 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 Cefola 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 | #142,108 | #144,270 | -1.5% |
| Count | 117 | 117 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cefola bearers went from 117 to 117 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 2,162 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #144,270.
FAQ
Cefola surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cefola?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Cefola. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Cefola?
Cefola ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 117 people with the surname Cefola. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Cefola.
Has Cefola become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cefola went from 117 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Cefola?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cefola, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Cefola in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.7% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cefola appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.7%), Hispanic (5.1%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Cefola (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 Cefola mean?
An Italian surname derived from the word "cefalo" meaning head or chief. 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 Cefola (0.04 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 surname Cefola?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.