2000
#7,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,912
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.45
Rare Last name
Dicarlo
An Italian surname derived from the Latin "Carolus," meaning "free man," or referring to someone from Carlo, Italy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,491 Americans carry the last name Dicarlo. That puts it at #8,105 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,320 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dicarlo 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 Dicarlo with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,320
Census rank
#8,105
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,916 bearers of the surname Dicarlo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8105th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dicarlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dicarlo
The surname DiCarlo is of Italian origin, derived from the region of Calabria in southern Italy. It dates back to the medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is a combination of the Italian preposition "di" meaning "of" or "from" and the place name "Carlo" which is derived from the Latinized form of the Germanic name "Charles" or "Karl."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name DiCarlo can be found in the "Codice diplomatico Barese," a collection of medieval documents from the region of Bari, dating back to the 14th century. The name appears as "de Carlo" in these records, indicating its origins as a locative surname, denoting a person's place of origin or residence.
In the 16th century, the surname DiCarlo is mentioned in the "Libro delle Famiglie Nobili di Napoli" (Book of Noble Families of Naples), which recorded the noble families of the Kingdom of Naples. This suggests that the name was associated with nobility or gentry in that region during that time period.
One notable bearer of the surname was Giovanni DiCarlo, a 17th-century Italian composer and organist who was active in Naples and Rome. He was born in 1614 and died in 1684, leaving behind a significant body of sacred and secular music.
Another prominent figure with the surname DiCarlo was Pietro DiCarlo, an Italian soldier and military engineer who lived in the 18th century. He served in the armies of the Kingdom of Naples and was renowned for his expertise in fortifications and siege warfare.
In the 19th century, the name DiCarlo gained recognition through the works of the Italian playwright and author Vincenzo DiCarlo, who was born in 1836 in Palermo, Sicily. He wrote numerous plays and novels that explored themes of social justice and critiqued the societal norms of his time.
The surname DiCarlo has also been associated with various place names and localities in Italy, such as the town of Carlentini in the province of Syracuse, Sicily, which was formerly known as "Carlentino" or "Carlentu" in ancient times. These place names may have influenced the formation of the surname in certain regions.
Throughout its history, the surname DiCarlo has been subject to various spelling variations, including DeCarlo, DeCaroli, and Carlocci, among others. These variations reflect the regional dialects and linguistic influences that have shaped the name over centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dicarlo
Among Census respondents with the surname Dicarlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dicarlo 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 Dicarlo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 3,587
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 193
- Two or more races2.3% · 90
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 26
- Black or African American0.3% · 12
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dicarlo
Dicarlo 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
#7,992
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,138
+226 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 1.40
Rank movement Down 144 places
2020
#8,105
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,916
-222 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 113 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,848 | 3,912 | 1.45 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,992 | 4,138 | 1.40 | +226 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 144 places |
| 2020 | #8,105 | 3,916 | 1.31 | -222 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 113 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 Dicarlo 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 | #7,992 | #8,105 | -1.4% |
| Count | 4,138 | 3,916 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.40 | 1.31 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dicarlo bearers went from 4,138 to 3,916 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 113 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,992 to #8,105.
FAQ
Dicarlo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dicarlo?
Name Census estimates that about 4,491 living Americans carry the surname Dicarlo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,320 residents.
How common is Dicarlo?
Dicarlo ranks #8,105 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.31 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,916 people with the surname Dicarlo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,491), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.31 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Dicarlo.
Has Dicarlo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dicarlo went from 4,138 recorded bearers to 3,916. That is a decrease of 222 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,992 to #8,105.
What does the Census say about the background of Dicarlo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dicarlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Dicarlo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (3,587 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dicarlo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Hispanic (4.9%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Dicarlo (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 Dicarlo mean?
An Italian surname derived from the Latin "Carolus," meaning "free man," or referring to someone from Carlo, Italy. 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 Dicarlo (1.31 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 Dicarlo?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.