2000
#11,512
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,508
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.93
Rare Last name
Ditto
Derived from the Italian word "detto," meaning "said," and likely referring to a nickname or byname.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,733 Americans carry the last name Ditto. That puts it at #12,436 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.80 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 125,413 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ditto 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
2.7K
1 in 125,413
Census rank
#12,436
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,383 bearers of the surname Ditto in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.80 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12436th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ditto, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ditto
The surname DITTO originated in Italy during the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Italian word "ditto," which means "said" or "aforementioned." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who frequently used this word or was associated with it in some way.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name DITTO can be found in the city records of Florence, Italy, from the late 1500s. These records mention a family by the name of DITTO residing in the city at that time.
In the 17th century, the name DITTO appeared in various Italian manuscripts and documents. One notable example is a legal document from 1632 that mentions a merchant named Giovanni DITTO, who was involved in trade between Italy and Spain.
The name DITTO can also be traced back to the town of Ditto, located in the province of Lecce, in the Apulia region of southern Italy. It is possible that some individuals with this surname may have originated from this town or had ancestors who lived there.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname DITTO. One of the earliest was Gaspare DITTO, an Italian painter who lived in the late 16th century and was known for his religious works.
Another prominent figure was Antonio DITTO, an Italian mathematician and astronomer who lived in the 17th century. He made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics and collaborated with renowned scientists such as Galileo Galilei.
In the 19th century, Giuseppe DITTO was an Italian poet and writer who gained recognition for his romantic poetry and literary works. He was born in 1820 and passed away in 1892.
Moving into the 20th century, Mario DITTO was an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament from 1948 to 1968. He was actively involved in advocating for workers' rights and social reforms.
Finally, in more recent times, Francesca DITTO is a contemporary Italian artist known for her abstract paintings and sculptural works. She has exhibited her art in various galleries and museums across Europe and continues to contribute to the art world.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ditto
Among Census respondents with the surname Ditto, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Ditto 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 Ditto surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.6% · 2,041
- Black or African American6.5% · 155
- Two or more races3.8% · 91
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 69
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ditto
Ditto 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
#11,697
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,679
+171 bearers (+6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Down 185 places
2020
#12,436
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,383
-296 bearers (-11.0%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 739 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,512 | 2,508 | 0.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,697 | 2,679 | 0.91 | +171 bearers (+6.8%) | Down 185 places |
| 2020 | #12,436 | 2,383 | 0.80 | -296 bearers (-11.0%) | Down 739 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 Ditto 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 | #11,697 | #12,436 | -6.3% |
| Count | 2,679 | 2,383 | -11.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.91 | 0.80 | -12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ditto bearers went from 2,679 to 2,383 (-11.0% change). The surname moved down 739 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,697 to #12,436.
FAQ
Ditto surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ditto?
Name Census estimates that about 2,733 living Americans carry the surname Ditto. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 125,413 residents.
How common is Ditto?
Ditto ranks #12,436 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.80 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 2,383 people with the surname Ditto. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,733), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.8 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.80 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 Ditto.
Has Ditto become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ditto went from 2,679 recorded bearers to 2,383. That is a decrease of 296 (-11.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,697 to #12,436.
What does the Census say about the background of Ditto?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ditto, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.6%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Ditto in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.6% (2,041 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ditto appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.6%), Black (6.5%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Ditto (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 Ditto mean?
Derived from the Italian word "detto," meaning "said," and likely referring to a nickname or byname. 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 Ditto (0.80 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 share the surname Ditto?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.