2010
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Osia
A name indicating someone originally from Osia, a town in Italy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Osia. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Osia 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Osia in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Osia, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.7%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (13.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Osia
The surname "OSIA" is believed to have originated in Italy during the medieval period. It is thought to have derived from the Old Italian word "osio," which means "leisure" or "idle." This suggests that the name may have been initially given to someone who was perceived as lazy or idle.
Another possibility is that the name is a variation of the Italian surname "Osio," which is derived from the Latinized form of the Germanic name "Oso" or "Osi," meaning "divine strength." This name was borne by several early Christian saints and may have been adopted as a surname by their followers.
The earliest recorded instance of the surname "OSIA" can be found in a document from the city of Genoa, dated 1278, which mentions a certain "Giovanni Osia." This suggests that the name had already been established in the region by the 13th century.
A notable figure bearing this surname was Melchiorre Osia, an Italian painter and architect who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He is best known for his work on the Chiesa di Santa Maria della Vittoria in Rome, where he designed the Chapel of the Blessed Sacrament.
In the 18th century, there was a prominent Italian family named Osia who owned a large estate in the town of Castelfranco Veneto, near Venice. One of their descendants, Antonio Osia, was a notable historian and author who wrote extensively on the history of the region.
Another individual of note was Giovanni Battista Osia, an Italian composer and music theorist who lived in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He was known for his contributions to the development of opera and was particularly influential in the city of Naples.
In the 19th century, there was a famous Italian architect named Giuseppe Osia, who was responsible for designing several notable buildings in the city of Turin, including the Palazzo Reale and the Chiesa di San Filippo Neri.
Throughout history, variations of the spelling of "OSIA" have been observed, such as "Osio," "Ossia," and "Osya." Additionally, there have been instances where the name has been associated with certain place names, such as the town of Osio Sotto in the province of Bergamo, Italy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Osia
Among Census respondents with the surname Osia, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.7%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (13.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Osia 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 Osia surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White66.7% · 70
- Black or African American17.1% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander13.3% · 14
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Osia
Osia appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
+3 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,443 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.9%) | Up 5,443 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 Osia 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 | #158,432 | #152,989 | 3.4% |
| Count | 102 | 105 | 2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 17.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Osia bearers went from 102 to 105 (+2.9% change). The surname moved up 5,443 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #152,989.
FAQ
Osia surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Osia?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Osia. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Osia?
Osia ranks #152,989 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 105 people with the surname Osia. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Osia.
Has Osia become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Osia went from 102 recorded bearers to 105. That is an increase of 3 (+2.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Osia?
Among Census respondents with the surname Osia, the largest self-reported group is White at 66.7%. The next largest groups are Black (17.1%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (13.3%). 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 Osia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 66.7% (70 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Osia appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (66.7%), Black (17.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (13.3%). 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 Osia (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 Osia mean?
A name indicating someone originally from Osia, a town in Italy. 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 Osia (0.04 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 surname Osia?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.