2000
#10,848
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,697
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.00
Rare Last name
Merlo
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who hunts blackbirds or keeps trained blackbirds.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,405 Americans carry the last name Merlo. That puts it at #10,321 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 100,662 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Merlo 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
3.4K
1 in 100,662
Census rank
#10,321
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,969 bearers of the surname Merlo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10321st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.4%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Merlo
The surname MERLO is of Italian origin, originating in the northern regions of Italy. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "merlo," which means "blackbird." The name likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who resembled a blackbird in some way, either through their appearance or behavior.
In the early 14th century, the surname MERLO appeared in historical records from the city of Genoa, located in the northwestern region of Liguria, Italy. One of the earliest recorded instances was in a document from 1312, which mentioned a merchant named Guglielmo MERLO.
The name also has a connection to the town of Merlo, located in the province of Cuneo, Piedmont region. It is possible that some individuals with the surname MERLO originated from or had ties to this town, taking on the name as a locative surname.
Notable individuals with the surname MERLO throughout history include:
1. Antonio MERLO (born in Genoa, Italy, in the 15th century), a renowned painter and artist during the Italian Renaissance.
2. Girolamo MERLO (1561-1633), an Italian composer and musician from the city of Ferrara.
3. Sebastiano MERLO (1726-1802), an Italian architect and engineer who designed several prominent buildings in Turin, Italy.
4. Agostino MERLO (1869-1945), an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament.
5. Giuseppe MERLO (1910-1992), an Italian professional football player and manager, who played for several clubs in Italy, including Juventus.
The surname MERLO has also been found in historical records from other Italian regions, such as Lombardy and Veneto, suggesting that the name may have spread across different parts of the country over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Merlo
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.4%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Merlo 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 Merlo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.4% · 1,883
- Hispanic or Latino33.4% · 992
- Two or more races1.5% · 46
- Black or African American0.9% · 26
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Merlo
Merlo 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
#10,320
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,122
+425 bearers (+15.8%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Up 528 places
2020
#10,321
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,969
-153 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 1 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,848 | 2,697 | 1.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,320 | 3,122 | 1.06 | +425 bearers (+15.8%) | Up 528 places |
| 2020 | #10,321 | 2,969 | 0.99 | -153 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 1 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 Merlo 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 | #10,320 | #10,321 | -0.0% |
| Count | 3,122 | 2,969 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.06 | 0.99 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Merlo bearers went from 3,122 to 2,969 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 1 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,320 to #10,321.
FAQ
Merlo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Merlo?
Name Census estimates that about 3,405 living Americans carry the surname Merlo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 100,662 residents.
How common is Merlo?
Merlo ranks #10,321 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.99 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 2,969 people with the surname Merlo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,405), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.99 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 Merlo.
Has Merlo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Merlo went from 3,122 recorded bearers to 2,969. That is a decrease of 153 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,320 to #10,321.
What does the Census say about the background of Merlo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Merlo, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (33.4%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Merlo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.4% (1,883 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Merlo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.4%), Hispanic (33.4%), Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Merlo (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 Merlo mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a person who hunts blackbirds or keeps trained blackbirds. 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 Merlo (0.99 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 Merlo?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Merlo, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.