2010
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Dongilli
An Italian surname likely derived from a dialectal variant of the word "donzella" meaning "young lady".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 118 Americans carry the last name Dongilli. That puts it at #154,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,904,698 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dongilli 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
118
1 in 2,904,698
Census rank
#154,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
103
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 103 bearers of the surname Dongilli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dongilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dongilli
The surname DONGILLI originates from Italy, with its roots dating back to the late medieval period. It is believed to have emerged from the northern Italian regions of Lombardy and Piedmont, where variations of the name such as "Dongellini" and "Donghelli" were commonly found.
The name DONGILLI is thought to be derived from the Italian word "donzella," which means "young lady" or "maiden." This suggests that the surname may have been initially bestowed upon someone whose occupation or role involved dealing with young women, possibly a chaperone or a governess.
Historical records from the 14th century indicate that a notable figure named Giovanni Dongilli was a respected jurist and legal scholar in the city of Milan. His writings on civil law were widely influential during the Renaissance era.
In the 15th century, a prominent family bearing the DONGILLI name resided in the town of Alessandria, located in the Piedmont region. They were landowners and played a significant role in the local governance and administration of the area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the DONGILLI surname can be found in a birth registry from the year 1527 in the town of Casale Monferrato, located in the Piedmont region. The entry lists the birth of a child named Maria Dongilli.
During the 16th century, a notable figure named Antonio Dongilli (1520-1589) gained recognition as a skilled architect and engineer. He was renowned for designing several churches and public buildings in the city of Turin, including the Church of San Filippo Neri.
In the 18th century, a scholar named Giuseppe Dongilli (1732-1806) from the city of Genoa made significant contributions to the field of linguistics, particularly in the study of the Ligurian language and its dialects.
Another notable individual bearing the DONGILLI surname was Giambattista Dongilli (1789-1867), a prominent lawyer and politician from the city of Novara. He served as a member of the Piedmontese Parliament and played a crucial role in the Italian unification movement.
As the centuries passed, the DONGILLI surname spread to other regions of Italy, and its spelling variations continued to evolve. However, its origins can be traced back to the northern Italian regions of Lombardy and Piedmont, where it emerged as a surname with potential links to occupations or roles involving young women.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dongilli
Among Census respondents with the surname Dongilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Dongilli 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 Dongilli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.2% · 96
- Two or more races3.9% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dongilli
Dongilli appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
-13 bearers (-11.2%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 11,033 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,182 | 103 | 0.03 | -13 bearers (-11.2%) | Down 11,033 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 Dongilli 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 | #143,149 | #154,182 | -7.7% |
| Count | 116 | 103 | -11.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dongilli bearers went from 116 to 103 (-11.2% change). The surname moved down 11,033 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #154,182.
FAQ
Dongilli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dongilli?
Name Census estimates that about 118 living Americans carry the surname Dongilli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,904,698 residents.
How common is Dongilli?
Dongilli ranks #154,182 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 103 people with the surname Dongilli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Dongilli.
Has Dongilli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dongilli went from 116 recorded bearers to 103. That is a decrease of 13 (-11.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #154,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Dongilli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dongilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Dongilli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.2% (96 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dongilli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.2%), Two or More Races (3.9%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Dongilli (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 Dongilli mean?
An Italian surname likely derived from a dialectal variant of the word "donzella" meaning "young lady". 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 Dongilli (0.03 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 Dongilli?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.