Lio last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Lio

A surname derived from the Italian personal name "Lio" or "Leo", meaning "lion".

Lio, 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 Lio surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Lio in America

Lio is the 42094th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Lio surname appeared 516 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 Lio.

We can also compare 2010 data for Lio 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 42094 44350 -5.22%
Count 516 457 12.13%
Proportion per 100k 0.17 0.17 0.00%

The history of the last name Lio

The surname Lio is believed to have originated in Italy, specifically in the regions of Veneto and Lombardy, during the medieval period. It is likely derived from the Italian word "leone," meaning lion, or the Latin word "leo," which also means lion. This suggests that the name may have initially been a nickname or a descriptive name given to someone who exhibited lion-like qualities or traits.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Lio can be traced back to the 13th century in various historical documents and records from northern Italy. One notable mention is found in the Venetian archives, where a certain Bartolomeo Lio is listed as a merchant in the year 1268.

In the 14th century, the Lio family gained prominence in Venice, with several members holding influential positions in the city's government and trade guilds. One of the most notable figures from this era was Pietro Lio, a wealthy merchant and diplomat who served as the Venetian ambassador to the court of the Byzantine Empire in the late 1300s.

During the Renaissance period, the surname Lio was associated with several notable artists and intellectuals. One such figure was Battista Lio, a 16th-century painter and architect who worked on various projects in Venice and the surrounding areas.

Another significant figure bearing the Lio surname was Gasparo Lio, a 17th-century jurist and legal scholar from Verona. His comprehensive treatise on Roman law, "De Iure Civili," was widely studied and influential during that time.

In the 18th century, the Lio family expanded beyond Italy, with some members settling in other parts of Europe and the Americas. One notable individual from this period was Juan Lio, a Spanish explorer who participated in the colonization efforts in South America in the late 1700s.

Throughout history, the surname Lio has also been associated with several place names and older spellings. For instance, the town of Liosia, located in the region of Veneto, is believed to have derived its name from the Lio family, who were once landowners in the area. Additionally, variations such as Lio, Lio', and Lyo have been found in historical documents.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Lio

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

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 Lio was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 40.70% 210
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 38.95% 201
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 2.33% 12
Hispanic Origin 16.86% 87

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 Lio has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 40.70% 46.83% -14.01%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 38.95% 38.51% 1.14%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 2.33% 2.63% -12.10%
Hispanic 16.86% 11.60% 36.96%

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 Lio was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Lio last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on October 8, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/lio-surname-popularity/.

"Lio last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/lio-surname-popularity/. Accessed 8 October, 2025

Lio last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/lio-surname-popularity/.

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