2000
#5,818
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,441
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.02
Rare Last name
Farina
An Italian occupational surname referring to a miller or flour merchant.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,814 Americans carry the last name Farina. That puts it at #6,451 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.70 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 58,953 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Farina 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 Farina with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.8K
1 in 58,953
Census rank
#6,451
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,070 bearers of the surname Farina in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.70 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6451st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Farina, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Farina
The surname Farina originates from Italy and can be traced back to the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Italian word "farina," which means "flour." This suggests that the name was likely first given to someone who worked with flour, such as a miller or baker.
The name Farina can be found in historical records from various regions of Italy, including Tuscany, Lombardy, and Veneto. It is believed to have first appeared in written documents during the 13th century, although the exact date and location of its earliest recorded use are uncertain.
One notable historical reference to the name Farina can be found in the "Libro di Montaperti," a chronicle written in the 13th century that describes the Battle of Montaperti, which took place in 1260 near Siena, Tuscany. The chronicle mentions a man named Farina who was involved in the battle.
The earliest recorded individual with the surname Farina is thought to be Francesco Farina, a merchant from Genoa, who lived in the late 14th century. Another early bearer of the name was Giovanni Farina, a painter from Faenza, who was active in the early 15th century.
One of the most famous individuals with the surname Farina was Giovanni Paolo Farina, an Italian perfumer who lived in the 17th century (1564-1625). He is credited with creating the first eau de cologne, a type of perfume that became popular throughout Europe.
Other notable individuals with the surname Farina include Antonio Farina (1555-1604), an Italian architect and engineer who designed the Palazzo del Broletto in Como, and Prospero Farina (1612-1672), an Italian painter who was active in Rome during the Baroque period.
The name Farina has also been associated with various place names in Italy, such as Farina di Cori, a town in the Lazio region, and Farina Rivoli, a municipality in the Piedmont region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Farina
Among Census respondents with the surname Farina, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Farina 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 Farina surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.5% · 4,334
- Hispanic or Latino10.7% · 545
- Two or more races2.0% · 101
- Black or African American0.9% · 44
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Farina
Farina 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
#6,088
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,633
+192 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 1.91
Rank movement Down 270 places
2020
#6,451
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,070
-563 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 1.70
Rank movement Down 363 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,818 | 5,441 | 2.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,088 | 5,633 | 1.91 | +192 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 270 places |
| 2020 | #6,451 | 5,070 | 1.70 | -563 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 363 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 Farina 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 | #6,088 | #6,451 | -6.0% |
| Count | 5,633 | 5,070 | -10.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.91 | 1.70 | -11.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Farina bearers went from 5,633 to 5,070 (-10.0% change). The surname moved down 363 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,088 to #6,451.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Farina
FAQ
Farina surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Farina?
Name Census estimates that about 5,814 living Americans carry the surname Farina. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 58,953 residents.
How common is Farina?
Farina ranks #6,451 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.70 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 5,070 people with the surname Farina. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,814), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.7 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.70 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 Farina.
Has Farina become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Farina went from 5,633 recorded bearers to 5,070. That is a decrease of 563 (-10.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,088 to #6,451.
What does the Census say about the background of Farina?
Among Census respondents with the surname Farina, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.7%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Farina in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.5% (4,334 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Farina appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.5%), Hispanic (10.7%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Farina (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 Farina mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a miller or flour merchant. 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 Farina (1.70 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 common is the surname Farina?
Want to know how many people have the surname Farina? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.