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

Melara, 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 Melara surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Melara in America

Melara is the 10204th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Melara surname appeared 3,157 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Melara.

We can also compare 2010 data for Melara 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 Melara

The surname Melara is of Italian origin, tracing its roots back to the 14th century in the region of Tuscany. The name is believed to derive from the Latin word "mellaria," which means "place of honey production." This suggests that the earliest bearers of the name were likely involved in beekeeping or the production of honey.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Melara can be found in the historic town of Arezzo, located in eastern Tuscany. In the medieval period, Arezzo was renowned for its thriving agricultural industry, including the cultivation of honey. It is possible that the name Melara initially referred to an area or settlement within Arezzo where beekeepers or honey producers resided.

The name Melara also appears in various historical documents and records from the 15th and 16th centuries, indicating its widespread use during the Renaissance period. For instance, the renowned Florentine historian Giorgio Vasari mentioned the name in his seminal work, "The Lives of the Most Excellent Painters, Sculptors, and Architects," when referring to the artist Bartolomeo Melara, who lived from 1477 to 1551.

Another notable figure with the surname Melara was Francesco Melara, a 16th-century Italian architect and military engineer. He was born in Modena in 1525 and is credited with designing several fortifications and defensive structures throughout Italy, including the citadel of Alessandria and the fortifications of Piacenza.

In the 17th century, the name Melara gained further prominence with the birth of Ercole Melara (1597-1675), an Italian Baroque painter known for his religious works and frescoes adorning numerous churches in Rome and the surrounding regions.

Another individual of historical significance was Girolamo Melara (1619-1680), a Jesuit priest and mathematician from Modena. He made significant contributions to the field of mathematics and is remembered for his work on calculating the areas and volumes of various geometric shapes.

The surname Melara has also been associated with several place names throughout Italy, such as the town of Melara in the province of Rovigo, located in the Veneto region. This town likely derived its name from the same Latin root as the surname, further reinforcing the connection between the name and the production of honey.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Melara

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

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

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

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