2000
#48,109
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 413
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.15
Very Rare Last name
Molinelli
A surname derived from the Italian word "molino," meaning mill or miller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 509 Americans carry the last name Molinelli. That puts it at #50,816 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 673,388 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Molinelli 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
509
1 in 673,388
Census rank
#50,816
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
444
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 444 bearers of the surname Molinelli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 50816th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Molinelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Molinelli
The surname Molinelli originates from Italy, with its earliest known records dating back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Italian word "molinello," which means "little mill," suggesting that the name was likely given to someone who lived near or worked at a mill. The name is also closely related to the Italian word "mulino," meaning "mill."
One of the earliest known references to the name Molinelli can be found in the Codice Diplomatico Longobardo, a collection of historical documents from the Lombard period in Italy, dating back to around 1200 AD. The name appears in records from the regions of Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna, where many mills were located during that time.
In the 14th century, the name Molinelli appeared in the Estimo, a tax record from the city of Florence, indicating that families with this surname were present in the area. The name was also found in various other medieval documents, such as land records and legal contracts, from cities like Siena, Pisa, and Bologna.
One notable individual with the surname Molinelli was Giovanni Battista Molinelli, an Italian painter who lived from 1577 to 1634. He was known for his religious artworks and frescoes, many of which can still be seen in churches throughout Italy.
Another prominent figure was Pier Francesco Molinelli, a 17th-century Italian architect and engineer who worked on several significant projects in Rome, including the construction of the Palazzo della Cancelleria.
In the 19th century, Antonio Molinelli (1819-1891) was an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a deputy in the Italian Parliament and played a role in the unification of Italy.
Pietro Molinelli (1888-1965) was an Italian sculptor and artist known for his works in bronze and marble, many of which can be found in public spaces and museums throughout Italy.
Lastly, Alfredo Molinelli (1920-2004) was an Italian football player who played as a midfielder for several Italian clubs, including Internazionale and Juventus, during the 1940s and 1950s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Molinelli
Among Census respondents with the surname Molinelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Molinelli 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 Molinelli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White85.8% · 381
- Hispanic or Latino10.8% · 48
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 8
- Two or more races0.9% · 4
- Black or African American0.7% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Molinelli
Molinelli 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
#48,717
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 433
+20 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Down 608 places
2020
#50,816
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 444
+11 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Down 2,099 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #48,109 | 413 | 0.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #48,717 | 433 | 0.15 | +20 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 608 places |
| 2020 | #50,816 | 444 | 0.15 | +11 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 2,099 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 Molinelli 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 | #48,717 | #50,816 | -4.3% |
| Count | 433 | 444 | 2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.15 | 0.15 | -1.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Molinelli bearers went from 433 to 444 (+2.5% change). The surname moved down 2,099 positions in the national ranking, going from #48,717 to #50,816.
FAQ
Molinelli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Molinelli?
Name Census estimates that about 509 living Americans carry the surname Molinelli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 673,388 residents.
How common is Molinelli?
Molinelli ranks #50,816 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 444 people with the surname Molinelli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (509), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Molinelli.
Has Molinelli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Molinelli went from 433 recorded bearers to 444. That is an increase of 11 (+2.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #48,717 to #50,816.
What does the Census say about the background of Molinelli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Molinelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 85.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Molinelli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 85.8% (381 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Molinelli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (85.8%), Hispanic (10.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (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 Molinelli (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 Molinelli mean?
A surname derived from the Italian word "molino," meaning mill or miller. 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 Molinelli (0.15 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 have the last name Molinelli?
See how many Americans have the surname Molinelli on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.