2000
#5,192
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,183
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.29
Rare Last name
Palmieri
An Italian occupational surname referring to a pilgrim who carried a palm branch or a palm-leaf seller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,640 Americans carry the last name Palmieri. That puts it at #5,766 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,620 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Palmieri 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 Palmieri with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.6K
1 in 51,620
Census rank
#5,766
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,790 bearers of the surname Palmieri in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5766th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmieri, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Palmieri
The surname Palmieri originated in Italy. It is derived from the Latin word "palma," meaning palm tree. The earliest known instances of the name date back to the 12th century in the region of Campania, particularly in the city of Naples and its surrounding areas.
The name was initially associated with individuals who lived near palm trees or worked in professions related to palm cultivation and trade. It was common for surnames in medieval Italy to be derived from occupations, locations, or distinctive physical features.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Palmieri can be found in a document from the year 1200, where a certain Matteo Palmieri is listed as a landowner in the town of Nola, near Naples. This suggests that the name had already been established in the region by that time.
In the 14th century, a notable figure with the surname Palmieri was Matteo Palmieri (1406-1475), a renowned Italian Renaissance humanist, poet, and historian. He is best known for his allegorical work "Città di Vita" (The City of Life), which explored themes of human virtue and the pursuit of knowledge.
Another prominent individual bearing the name was Benedetto Palmieri (1568-1618), an Italian composer and organist who served at the Basilica of San Pietro in Vatican City. His works, including motets and madrigals, were highly regarded during his lifetime.
In the realm of art, the name Palmieri is associated with Giovanni Battista Palmieri (1720-1793), an Italian painter from the Rococo period. His works, which often depicted mythological and allegorical scenes, can be found in various galleries and museums throughout Italy.
During the 19th century, Giuseppe Palmieri (1788-1867) was a prominent Italian geologist and volcanologist. He conducted extensive research on Mount Vesuvius and published several influential works on volcanology and seismology.
As the Palmieri family spread across Italy and beyond, the name underwent various spelling variations, such as Palmiero, Palmerio, and Palmeri, reflecting regional linguistic differences and influences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Palmieri
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmieri, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Palmieri 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 Palmieri surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 5,240
- Hispanic or Latino6.2% · 358
- Two or more races2.3% · 133
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 34
- Black or African American0.3% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Palmieri
Palmieri 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
#5,522
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,296
+113 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 2.13
Rank movement Down 330 places
2020
#5,766
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,790
-506 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 1.94
Rank movement Down 244 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,192 | 6,183 | 2.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,522 | 6,296 | 2.13 | +113 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 330 places |
| 2020 | #5,766 | 5,790 | 1.94 | -506 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 244 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 Palmieri 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 | #5,522 | #5,766 | -4.4% |
| Count | 6,296 | 5,790 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.13 | 1.94 | -9.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Palmieri bearers went from 6,296 to 5,790 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 244 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,522 to #5,766.
FAQ
Palmieri surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Palmieri?
Name Census estimates that about 6,640 living Americans carry the surname Palmieri. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,620 residents.
How common is Palmieri?
Palmieri ranks #5,766 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.94 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,790 people with the surname Palmieri. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,640), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.94 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Palmieri.
Has Palmieri become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Palmieri went from 6,296 recorded bearers to 5,790. That is a decrease of 506 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,522 to #5,766.
What does the Census say about the background of Palmieri?
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmieri, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Palmieri in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (5,240 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Palmieri appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Hispanic (6.2%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Palmieri (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 Palmieri mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a pilgrim who carried a palm branch or a palm-leaf seller. 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 Palmieri (1.94 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 Palmieri?
If you just want to know how common the surname Palmieri is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.