2000
#4,224
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,768
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.88
Rare Last name
Grasso
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who worked with fats or lard, or a heavy-set individual.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,352 Americans carry the last name Grasso. That puts it at #4,715 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.44 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 41,039 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Grasso 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 Grasso with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.4K
1 in 41,039
Census rank
#4,715
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,283 bearers of the surname Grasso in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.44 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4715th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Grasso, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Grasso
The surname Grasso originates from Italy, where it has been present since at least the 12th century. It is derived from the Italian word "grasso," meaning "fat" or "stout," suggesting that the name was likely originally a descriptive nickname given to a heavyset individual. The name is particularly associated with the regions of Campania, Calabria, and Sicily in southern Italy.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Grasso surname can be found in the Codice Diplomatico Barese, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bari, dated around 1200. The name appears in various spellings, such as "Grassus" and "Grassio," reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and spelling at the time.
In the 14th century, a notable bearer of the Grasso name was Gian Antonio Grasso, a wealthy merchant and banker from Genoa (born around 1320). He was involved in financing various trade expeditions and played a significant role in the city's economic affairs during that period.
Another prominent figure with the Grasso surname was Antonio Grasso, a Neapolitan painter who lived from 1555 to 1633. He was known for his religious works and contributed to the decoration of several churches in Naples and its surrounding areas.
During the Renaissance, the Grasso family was also influential in the city of Palermo, Sicily. One member, Vincenzo Grasso (1564-1629), served as a senator and held important administrative positions in the city's government.
In the 19th century, Luigi Grasso (1805-1865) was a notable Italian composer and conductor who worked in Naples and composed several operas and other musical works.
Historically, the Grasso surname has also been associated with various place names, such as Grasso, a town in the province of Cosenza, Calabria, and Grasso Valdelsa, a comune in the province of Siena, Tuscany. These place names may have influenced the spread and variations of the surname in different regions of Italy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Grasso
Among Census respondents with the surname Grasso, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Grasso 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 Grasso surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.7% · 6,605
- Hispanic or Latino6.0% · 436
- Two or more races2.0% · 144
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 63
- Black or African American0.5% · 33
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Grasso
Grasso 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
#4,492
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,894
+126 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 2.68
Rank movement Down 268 places
2020
#4,715
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,283
-611 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 2.44
Rank movement Down 223 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,224 | 7,768 | 2.88 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,492 | 7,894 | 2.68 | +126 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 268 places |
| 2020 | #4,715 | 7,283 | 2.44 | -611 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 223 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 Grasso 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 | #4,492 | #4,715 | -5.0% |
| Count | 7,894 | 7,283 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.68 | 2.44 | -9.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Grasso bearers went from 7,894 to 7,283 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 223 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,492 to #4,715.
FAQ
Grasso surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Grasso?
Name Census estimates that about 8,352 living Americans carry the surname Grasso. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 41,039 residents.
How common is Grasso?
Grasso ranks #4,715 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.44 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 7,283 people with the surname Grasso. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,352), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.44 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.44 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 Grasso.
Has Grasso become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Grasso went from 7,894 recorded bearers to 7,283. That is a decrease of 611 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,492 to #4,715.
What does the Census say about the background of Grasso?
Among Census respondents with the surname Grasso, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.0%) 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 Grasso in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (6,605 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Grasso appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.7%), Hispanic (6.0%), 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 Grasso (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 Grasso mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who worked with fats or lard, or a heavy-set individual. 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 Grasso (2.44 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 have the last name Grasso?
Want to know how many people have the surname Grasso? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.