2000
#1,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,651
First available Census row
Per 100,000 8.40
Uncommon Last name
Esposito
Derived from the Italian word "esposto," referring to a child abandoned or given up for adoption.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 24,516 Americans carry the last name Esposito. That puts it at #1,631 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 13,981 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Esposito 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 Esposito with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
25K
1 in 13,981
Census rank
#1,631
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 21,379 bearers of the surname Esposito in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1631st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Esposito, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Esposito
The surname Esposito originated in Italy, tracing its roots back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Italian word "esposto," which means "exposed" or "abandoned." The name was initially given to children who were abandoned and left at foundling homes or orphanages.
In the early days, foundling homes were often run by religious institutions, and the abandoned children were given surnames related to their circumstances. Esposito became a common surname in Naples and the surrounding regions of Campania, where many such foundling homes were located.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Esposito can be found in a 13th-century document from the city of Salerno, mentioning a certain "Petrus Espositus." This suggests that the name was already in use by that time in the southern Italian regions.
Over the centuries, the Esposito surname spread across Italy, particularly in the regions of Campania, Lazio, and Sicily. It became associated with several notable individuals, including Giambattista Esposito (1564-1639), a renowned Italian painter and architect from Naples.
Another prominent figure with the Esposito surname was Placido Esposito (1804-1859), an Italian revolutionary and patriot who played a significant role in the Risorgimento, the movement for Italian unification in the 19th century.
In the 20th century, Esposito gained further recognition with individuals like Francesco Esposito (1922-2001), an Italian film actor known for his roles in Spaghetti Western movies, and Michele Esposito (1855-1929), an Italian-American anarchist and labor leader who advocated for workers' rights in the United States.
The surname Esposito has also been associated with various place names and older spellings. For example, the town of Espositomonti in the province of Salerno is believed to be derived from the surname, reflecting the presence of the Esposito family in the region.
While the Esposito surname has its roots in Italy, it has since spread worldwide due to Italian migration and diaspora communities. Today, it remains a prominent surname in Italy and among Italian-American communities, carrying with it a rich history and cultural significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Esposito
Among Census respondents with the surname Esposito, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Esposito 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 Esposito surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 19,324
- Hispanic or Latino6.5% · 1,397
- Two or more races1.8% · 384
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 133
- Black or African American0.6% · 124
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Esposito
Esposito 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
#1,576
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 22,789
+138 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 7.73
Rank movement Down 130 places
2020
#1,631
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,379
-1,410 bearers (-6.2%)
Per 100,000 7.15
Rank movement Down 55 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,446 | 22,651 | 8.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,576 | 22,789 | 7.73 | +138 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 130 places |
| 2020 | #1,631 | 21,379 | 7.15 | -1,410 bearers (-6.2%) | Down 55 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 Esposito 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 | #1,576 | #1,631 | -3.5% |
| Count | 22,789 | 21,379 | -6.2% |
| Per 100K | 7.73 | 7.15 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Esposito bearers went from 22,789 to 21,379 (-6.2% change). The surname moved down 55 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,576 to #1,631.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Esposito
FAQ
Esposito surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Esposito?
Name Census estimates that about 24,516 living Americans carry the surname Esposito. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 13,981 residents.
How common is Esposito?
Esposito ranks #1,631 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 21,379 people with the surname Esposito. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (24,516), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Esposito.
Has Esposito become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Esposito went from 22,789 recorded bearers to 21,379. That is a decrease of 1,410 (-6.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,576 to #1,631.
What does the Census say about the background of Esposito?
Among Census respondents with the surname Esposito, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Esposito in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (19,324 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Esposito appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Hispanic (6.5%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Esposito (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 Esposito mean?
Derived from the Italian word "esposto," referring to a child abandoned or given up for adoption. 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 Esposito (7.15 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 Americans have the surname Esposito?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.