2000
#117,538
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 137
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Giamo
A surname deriving from an Italian place name or nickname.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 133 Americans carry the last name Giamo. That puts it at #145,028 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,577,100 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Giamo 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
133
1 in 2,577,100
Census rank
#145,028
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
116
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 116 bearers of the surname Giamo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145028th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Giamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Giamo
The surname GIAMO is believed to have originated in Italy, dating back to the medieval period around the 12th century. It is thought to be derived from the Italian word "giammai," meaning "never" or "not at all." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who exhibited a stubborn or defiant personality.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name GIAMO can be found in the Florentine archives from the year 1327, where a certain Giovanni di Giamo is mentioned as a merchant and landowner. This indicates that the name was already well-established in the region of Tuscany at that time.
In the 15th century, there are records of a noble family called the Giamo residing in the city of Siena. They were known for their involvement in local politics and their patronage of the arts. One notable member of this family was Niccolò Giamo (1432-1498), a renowned humanist scholar and poet.
During the Renaissance period, the name GIAMO gained further prominence with the birth of Girolamo Giamo (1497-1561), a celebrated architect from Venice. He was responsible for the design of several churches and palaces in the city, including the Church of San Giorgio Maggiore and the Palazzo Grimani.
Another influential figure with the surname GIAMO was Marcantonio Giamo (1578-1649), a jurist and legal scholar from Naples. He authored several treatises on Roman law and served as a judge in the city's courts.
In the 18th century, the GIAMO name appeared in the records of the Neapolitan aristocracy, with the birth of Vincenzo Giamo (1732-1805), a nobleman and military officer who fought in the wars against the French Revolutionary forces.
Over the centuries, the GIAMO surname has undergone various spelling variations, such as Giammo, Giammi, and Giami, reflecting the regional dialects and pronunciation differences across Italy. However, the core meaning and origin of the name have remained relatively consistent.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Giamo
Among Census respondents with the surname Giamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Giamo 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 Giamo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.4% · 113
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Giamo
Giamo 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
#123,064
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 140
+3 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 5,526 places
2020
#145,028
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
-24 bearers (-17.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,964 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #117,538 | 137 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #123,064 | 140 | 0.05 | +3 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 5,526 places |
| 2020 | #145,028 | 116 | 0.04 | -24 bearers (-17.1%) | Down 21,964 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 Giamo 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 | #123,064 | #145,028 | -17.8% |
| Count | 140 | 116 | -17.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.04 | -22.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Giamo bearers went from 140 to 116 (-17.1% change). The surname moved down 21,964 positions in the national ranking, going from #123,064 to #145,028.
FAQ
Giamo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Giamo?
Name Census estimates that about 133 living Americans carry the surname Giamo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,577,100 residents.
How common is Giamo?
Giamo ranks #145,028 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 116 people with the surname Giamo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (133), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Giamo.
Has Giamo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Giamo went from 140 recorded bearers to 116. That is a decrease of 24 (-17.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #123,064 to #145,028.
What does the Census say about the background of Giamo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Giamo, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.4%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Giamo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.4% (113 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Giamo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.4%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Giamo (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 Giamo mean?
A surname deriving from an Italian place name or nickname. 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 Giamo (0.04 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 are called Giamo?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Giamo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.