2000
#9,902
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,005
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.11
Rare Last name
Ferri
An occupational surname referring to an ironworker or someone who works with iron.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,151 Americans carry the last name Ferri. That puts it at #11,045 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,776 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ferri 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 Ferri with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 108,776
Census rank
#11,045
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,748 bearers of the surname Ferri in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11045th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ferri, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ferri
The surname Ferri originates from Italy, where it first emerged in the 12th century. It is derived from the Latin word "ferrum," meaning iron, and was likely an occupational name for a blacksmith or ironworker. The earliest known bearers of the name were found in the regions of Tuscany and Emilia-Romagna.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ferri name can be found in a document from 1285 in the town of Ferrara, where a certain Guido Ferri was listed as a blacksmith. The name also appears in other medieval records from cities like Florence and Bologna.
In the 14th century, a branch of the Ferri family settled in the town of San Marino, where they became prominent citizens and landowners. A notable member of this branch was Girolamo Ferri (1470-1542), who served as a diplomat and ambassador for the Republic of San Marino.
During the Renaissance period, the Ferri name was associated with several artists and writers. One of the most famous was Ciro Ferri (1634-1689), an Italian painter and architect who worked in Rome and was a student of Pietro da Cortona. Another notable bearer of the name was Girolamo Ferri (1713-1789), an Italian poet and librettist who wrote for several operas.
In the 19th century, a prominent member of the Ferri family was Enrico Ferri (1856-1929), an Italian criminologist and socialist politician who served as a member of the Italian parliament and was a major figure in the development of the positivist school of criminology.
Other notable individuals with the surname Ferri include Giovanni Battista Ferri (1572-1644), an Italian architect and sculptor who worked on several churches and palaces in Rome, and Giacomo Ferri (1712-1779), an Italian mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ferri
Among Census respondents with the surname Ferri, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Ferri 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 Ferri surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 2,531
- Hispanic or Latino4.8% · 132
- Two or more races2.2% · 61
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 14
- Black or African American0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ferri
Ferri 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
#10,491
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,059
+54 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 589 places
2020
#11,045
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,748
-311 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 554 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,902 | 3,005 | 1.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,491 | 3,059 | 1.04 | +54 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 589 places |
| 2020 | #11,045 | 2,748 | 0.92 | -311 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 554 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 Ferri 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 | #10,491 | #11,045 | -5.3% |
| Count | 3,059 | 2,748 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 0.92 | -11.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ferri bearers went from 3,059 to 2,748 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 554 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,491 to #11,045.
FAQ
Ferri surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ferri?
Name Census estimates that about 3,151 living Americans carry the surname Ferri. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,776 residents.
How common is Ferri?
Ferri ranks #11,045 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,748 people with the surname Ferri. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,151), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Ferri.
Has Ferri become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ferri went from 3,059 recorded bearers to 2,748. That is a decrease of 311 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,491 to #11,045.
What does the Census say about the background of Ferri?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ferri, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.8%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Ferri in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (2,531 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ferri appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (4.8%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Ferri (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 Ferri mean?
An occupational surname referring to an ironworker or someone who works with iron. 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 Ferri (0.92 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 Ferri?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.