2000
#11,126
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,616
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.97
Rare Last name
Mistretta
A surname of Italian origin referring to a person from the Sicilian town of Mistretta.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,871 Americans carry the last name Mistretta. That puts it at #11,938 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,385 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mistretta 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Mistretta with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 119,385
Census rank
#11,938
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,504 bearers of the surname Mistretta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11938th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mistretta, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mistretta
The surname Mistretta is of Italian origin, derived from the town of Mistretta located in the province of Messina, Sicily. The name can be traced back to medieval times, originating from the Latin words "minister" and "strictus," which together mean "strict administrator." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have held a position of authority or governance in the region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mistretta can be found in the Sicilian Chancery records from the 13th century, where it appears as "de Mistretta." This variant suggests that the name was initially used as a locative surname, indicating an individual's place of origin or residence.
During the Renaissance period, the name Mistretta gained prominence in Sicily, particularly in the city of Palermo. In the 16th century, Francesco Mistretta (1515-1585) was a renowned Sicilian jurist and legal scholar who served as a judge in the Supreme Court of Palermo.
As the Sicilian diaspora spread across Italy and beyond, the surname Mistretta traveled with them. In the 18th century, Giuseppe Mistretta (1738-1819) was a notable Italian architect and engineer who contributed to the design of several churches and public buildings in Naples.
Another notable bearer of the Mistretta name was Antonio Mistretta (1870-1942), an Italian painter and sculptor from Palermo. His works were exhibited in various art galleries throughout Italy, and some of his sculptures can still be found in public spaces in Palermo.
In the late 19th century, the Mistretta family established a presence in the United States, particularly in the New York City area. One of the earliest recorded Mistrettas in America was Giuseppe Mistretta (1865-1932), an Italian immigrant who settled in Manhattan and worked as a tailor.
As the Mistretta family continued to grow and spread throughout the world, the name has been associated with various fields, including academia, politics, and the arts. However, its roots can be traced back to the small town of Mistretta in Sicily, where the name first emerged as a symbol of administrative authority and governance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mistretta
Among Census respondents with the surname Mistretta, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Mistretta 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 Mistretta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 2,347
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 85
- Two or more races1.9% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 13
- Black or African American0.4% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mistretta
Mistretta 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
#12,064
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,585
-31 bearers (-1.2%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 938 places
2020
#11,938
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,504
-81 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Up 126 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,126 | 2,616 | 0.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,064 | 2,585 | 0.88 | -31 bearers (-1.2%) | Down 938 places |
| 2020 | #11,938 | 2,504 | 0.84 | -81 bearers (-3.1%) | Up 126 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 Mistretta 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 | #12,064 | #11,938 | 1.0% |
| Count | 2,585 | 2,504 | -3.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.84 | -4.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mistretta bearers went from 2,585 to 2,504 (-3.1% change). The surname moved up 126 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,064 to #11,938.
FAQ
Mistretta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mistretta?
Name Census estimates that about 2,871 living Americans carry the surname Mistretta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,385 residents.
How common is Mistretta?
Mistretta ranks #11,938 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 2,504 people with the surname Mistretta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,871), 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 Mistretta.
Has Mistretta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mistretta went from 2,585 recorded bearers to 2,504. That is a decrease of 81 (-3.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,064 to #11,938.
What does the Census say about the background of Mistretta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mistretta, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Mistretta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (2,347 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mistretta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.7%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Mistretta (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 Mistretta mean?
A surname of Italian origin referring to a person from the Sicilian town of Mistretta. 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 Mistretta (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 Mistretta?
You can see how many people have the surname Mistretta on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.