Find out how popular the last name Hannibal is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Hannibal.

Hannibal, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Hannibal surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Hannibal in America

Hannibal is the 20502nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Hannibal surname appeared 1,294 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Hannibal.

We can also compare 2010 data for Hannibal to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Hannibal

The surname Hannibal is of ancient Punic origin, deriving from the Phoenician nameHannibaʿal, which means "Baal is gracious" or "favored by Baal." The name first gained prominence in the 3rd century BC with the famed Carthaginian military leader Hannibal Barca, who led his army, including war elephants, across the Alps to attack Rome during the Second Punic War.

The name is believed to have originated in the city of Carthage, located in present-day Tunisia, and was likely used by members of the Barcid family, to which Hannibal Barca belonged. This family played a significant role in the governance and military affairs of the Carthaginian empire.

In ancient Roman sources, the name is sometimes rendered as Annibal or Annibalis, reflecting the Latin adaptation of the original Punic form. The name appears in various historical records and manuscripts from the classical period, including the works of Roman historians such as Livy, Polybius, and Appian.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Hannibal was the aforementioned Hannibal Barca (247-183 BC), the renowned Carthaginian general who famously led his army across the Alps to invade Italy during the Second Punic War. His military exploits and strategic brilliance have made him one of the most celebrated military leaders in history.

Another notable bearer of the name was Hannibal the Younger (195-153 BC), who served as a general in the Carthaginian army and fought against the Romans during the Third Punic War. He was ultimately captured and taken to Rome as a prisoner.

In the medieval period, the name Hannibal appears in various chronicles and records, such as the Annals of Fulda, a 9th-century Frankish chronicle that mentions a Bavarian nobleman named Hannibal.

During the Renaissance, the name resurfaced in Italy, where it was sometimes used by Italian families, possibly as a reference to the ancient Carthaginian general. One example is Hannibal Ferretti (1470-1544), an Italian humanist and scholar who served as a secretary to Pope Leo X.

In the modern era, the surname Hannibal has been relatively rare, but it has been borne by a few notable individuals, such as Sir Thomas Hannibal (1620-1666), an English politician and landowner who served as a Member of Parliament during the English Civil War.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Hannibal

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Hannibal.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Hannibal was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Hannibal has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Hannibal was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Hannibal, please contact us.

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