2000
#5,356
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,980
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.22
Rare Last name
Distefano
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold woolen cloth.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,701 Americans carry the last name Distefano. That puts it at #5,713 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.96 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,150 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Distefano 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 Distefano with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.7K
1 in 51,150
Census rank
#5,713
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,844 bearers of the surname Distefano in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.96 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5713th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Distefano, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Distefano
The surname DiStefano is of Italian origin, specifically from the regions of Sicily and Calabria. It can be traced back to the 11th century and is believed to derive from the Greek name Stephanos, meaning "crown" or "wreath." The prefix "Di" was commonly added to surnames in Southern Italy, indicating a patronymic form or a place of origin.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Sicilian town of Militello Val di Catania, where a nobleman named Stefano di Stefano is mentioned in a document dated 1235. This suggests that the surname likely emerged as a way to distinguish between different individuals named Stefano within the same community.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, the DiStefano name appeared in various historical records and manuscripts in Sicily and Calabria. For example, a Gaspare DiStefano was recorded as a landowner in the town of Reggio Calabria in 1387.
In the 15th century, the name gained prominence with the birth of Girolamo DiStefano (1420-1492), a renowned poet and scholar from Messina, Sicily. His works, which included sonnets and lyric poetry, were widely acclaimed and contributed to the cultural renaissance of the time.
Another notable figure was Antonio DiStefano (1556-1634), a Sicilian architect and engineer who was responsible for the construction of several important buildings and fortifications in Palermo, including the Palazzo Reale and parts of the city's defensive walls.
The DiStefano name continued to be associated with influential individuals throughout the centuries. In the 18th century, Giuseppe DiStefano (1718-1792) was a prominent lawyer and politician from Catania, who served as a judge in the Sicilian parliament and played a significant role in the island's legal and political affairs.
During the 19th century, the DiStefano family produced several notable artists and intellectuals, such as the painter Vincenzo DiStefano (1813-1877) from Messina, whose works captured the landscapes and daily life of Sicily. Another prominent figure was the philosopher and writer Carmelo DiStefano (1851-1927), who was born in Agrigento and made significant contributions to the fields of epistemology and ethics.
Throughout its history, the surname DiStefano has been associated with various place names and variations in spelling, such as Distefano, De Stefano, and Di Stefano, reflecting the linguistic diversity and regional variations within Italy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Distefano
Among Census respondents with the surname Distefano, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.9%) and Two or More Races (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Distefano 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 Distefano surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.8% · 5,309
- Hispanic or Latino5.9% · 347
- Two or more races2.1% · 125
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 35
- Black or African American0.3% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Distefano
Distefano 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
#5,691
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,091
+111 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 2.06
Rank movement Down 335 places
2020
#5,713
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,844
-247 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 1.96
Rank movement Down 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,356 | 5,980 | 2.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,691 | 6,091 | 2.06 | +111 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 335 places |
| 2020 | #5,713 | 5,844 | 1.96 | -247 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 22 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 Distefano 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 | #5,691 | #5,713 | -0.4% |
| Count | 6,091 | 5,844 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 2.06 | 1.96 | -5.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Distefano bearers went from 6,091 to 5,844 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,691 to #5,713.
FAQ
Distefano surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Distefano?
Name Census estimates that about 6,701 living Americans carry the surname Distefano. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,150 residents.
How common is Distefano?
Distefano ranks #5,713 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.96 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,844 people with the surname Distefano. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,701), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.96 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.96 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Distefano.
Has Distefano become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Distefano went from 6,091 recorded bearers to 5,844. That is a decrease of 247 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,691 to #5,713.
What does the Census say about the background of Distefano?
Among Census respondents with the surname Distefano, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.9%) 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 Distefano in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.8% (5,309 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Distefano appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.8%), Hispanic (5.9%), 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 Distefano (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 Distefano mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who made or sold woolen cloth. 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 Distefano (1.96 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 are called Distefano?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Distefano on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.