2000
#11,382
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,540
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.94
Rare Last name
Liberatore
An Italian occupational surname referring to a liberator or someone who frees others from captivity or oppression.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,884 Americans carry the last name Liberatore. That puts it at #11,903 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 118,847 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Liberatore 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
2.9K
1 in 118,847
Census rank
#11,903
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,515 bearers of the surname Liberatore in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11903rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Liberatore, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Liberatore
The surname Liberatore originated in Italy during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Latin word "liberator," which means "liberator" or "one who frees." This name likely referred to someone who had freed themselves or others from some form of oppression or bondage.
The earliest known record of the name Liberatore can be found in a document from the 13th century in the region of Campania, located in southern Italy. During this time, the name was often spelled as "Liberatori" or "Liberatori."
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Liberatore was Gian Giacomo Liberatore, who lived in the 15th century and was a renowned philosopher and theologian from the city of Udine, Italy. He wrote several treatises on ethics and metaphysics, which were influential during the Renaissance period.
In the 16th century, the surname Liberatore appears in several historical records from the city of Naples. One notable individual was Antonio Liberatore, a wealthy merchant and landowner who was born in 1523 and died in 1597.
During the 17th century, the Liberatore family gained prominence in the region of Abruzzo, located in central Italy. One member of this family was Girolamo Liberatore, who was born in 1652 and served as a high-ranking official in the Papal States.
Another notable figure with the surname Liberatore was Nicola Liberatore, a prominent Italian philosopher and theologian who lived in the 19th century. He was born in 1828 in the town of Salerno and was a staunch defender of Thomistic philosophy.
Throughout history, the surname Liberatore has also been associated with several place names in Italy, such as the town of Liberatore in the province of Benevento, and the village of Liberatori in the province of Teramo.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Liberatore
Among Census respondents with the surname Liberatore, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Liberatore 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 Liberatore surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 2,342
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 90
- Two or more races2.5% · 62
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 12
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Liberatore
Liberatore 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
#11,998
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,603
+63 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 616 places
2020
#11,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,515
-88 bearers (-3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Up 95 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,382 | 2,540 | 0.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,998 | 2,603 | 0.88 | +63 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 616 places |
| 2020 | #11,903 | 2,515 | 0.84 | -88 bearers (-3.4%) | Up 95 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 Liberatore 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 | #11,998 | #11,903 | 0.8% |
| Count | 2,603 | 2,515 | -3.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.84 | -4.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Liberatore bearers went from 2,603 to 2,515 (-3.4% change). The surname moved up 95 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,998 to #11,903.
FAQ
Liberatore surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Liberatore?
Name Census estimates that about 2,884 living Americans carry the surname Liberatore. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 118,847 residents.
How common is Liberatore?
Liberatore ranks #11,903 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 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 2,515 people with the surname Liberatore. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,884), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 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 Liberatore.
Has Liberatore become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Liberatore went from 2,603 recorded bearers to 2,515. That is a decrease of 88 (-3.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,998 to #11,903.
What does the Census say about the background of Liberatore?
Among Census respondents with the surname Liberatore, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Liberatore in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (2,342 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Liberatore appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Liberatore (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 Liberatore mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a liberator or someone who frees others from captivity or oppression. 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 Liberatore (0.84 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 Liberatore?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Liberatore on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.