2000
#13,282
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.78
Rare Last name
Mazzella
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who makes or sells maces or clubs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,417 Americans carry the last name Mazzella. That puts it at #13,749 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 141,810 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mazzella 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
2.4K
1 in 141,810
Census rank
#13,749
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,108 bearers of the surname Mazzella in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13749th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mazzella, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mazzella
The surname Mazzella originated in Italy, specifically in the regions of Campania and Calabria, during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Italian word "mazza," meaning "club" or "mace," which could have been an occupational name for someone who made or used these weapons.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mazzella can be found in a document from the 14th century, where a certain Girolamo Mazzella is mentioned as a resident of the town of Salerno in Campania. Another early reference is the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval charters from the Cava de' Tirreni monastery in Campania, which includes several individuals bearing the surname Mazzella.
In the 16th century, the name Mazzella is associated with the town of Vibo Valentia in Calabria. Historical records from this period mention a family of nobles called the Mazzella di Vibo, who held significant influence in the region.
One notable figure with the surname Mazzella was Giovanni Battista Mazzella (1596-1672), an Italian lawyer and jurist from Calabria. He served as a judge and authored several legal treatises.
Another prominent individual was Scipione Mazzella (1615-1694), a Catholic priest and theologian from Naples. He was a professor at the University of Naples and wrote extensively on moral theology.
In the 19th century, Camillo Mazzella (1833-1900) was an Italian Cardinal who served as the Prefect of the Sacred Congregation of Rites and played a significant role in the Vatican's decision-making process.
Other historical figures with the surname Mazzella include Nicola Mazzella (1844-1907), an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a deputy in the Italian Parliament, and Vittorio Mazzella (1893-1968), an Italian painter and sculptor known for his works in the Futurist style.
The surname Mazzella has also been associated with various place names in Italy, such as the town of Mazzella in the province of Avellino, Campania, and the village of Mazzella in the province of Cosenza, Calabria.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mazzella
Among Census respondents with the surname Mazzella, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Mazzella 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 Mazzella surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 1,940
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 104
- Two or more races1.8% · 37
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 17
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mazzella
Mazzella 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
#13,674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,214
+107 bearers (+5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.75
Rank movement Down 392 places
2020
#13,749
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,108
-106 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 75 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,282 | 2,107 | 0.78 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,674 | 2,214 | 0.75 | +107 bearers (+5.1%) | Down 392 places |
| 2020 | #13,749 | 2,108 | 0.71 | -106 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 75 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 Mazzella 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 | #13,674 | #13,749 | -0.5% |
| Count | 2,214 | 2,108 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.75 | 0.71 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mazzella bearers went from 2,214 to 2,108 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 75 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,674 to #13,749.
FAQ
Mazzella surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mazzella?
Name Census estimates that about 2,417 living Americans carry the surname Mazzella. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 141,810 residents.
How common is Mazzella?
Mazzella ranks #13,749 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,108 people with the surname Mazzella. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,417), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Mazzella.
Has Mazzella become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mazzella went from 2,214 recorded bearers to 2,108. That is a decrease of 106 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,674 to #13,749.
What does the Census say about the background of Mazzella?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mazzella, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.9%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Mazzella in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (1,940 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mazzella appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Hispanic (4.9%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Mazzella (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 Mazzella mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who makes or sells maces or clubs. 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 Mazzella (0.71 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 share the surname Mazzella?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.