2000
#135,837
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Paolilli
An Italian surname derived from the given name Paolo, meaning "little Paul".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Paolilli. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Paolilli 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Paolilli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Paolilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Black (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Paolilli
The surname Paolilli originated in Italy during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian personal name Paolo, which is the Italian form of the Latin name Paulus, meaning "small" or "humble." The suffix "-illi" was a common diminutive ending used in Italian surnames, indicating a small or diminutive form of the name.
Paolilli is believed to have first emerged in the southern regions of Italy, particularly in the regions of Campania, Basilicata, and Calabria. The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries in various medieval documents and records from these regions.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Paolilli was Giovanni Paolilli, a nobleman from the town of Acri in Calabria, who was mentioned in a legal document dated 1327. Another notable early bearer was Matteo Paolilli, a merchant from Naples who was involved in trade with the Venetian Republic in the late 14th century.
During the Renaissance period, the surname Paolilli began to spread beyond its original regions of origin. In the 16th century, a branch of the family settled in the city of Rome, where they became prominent in the legal profession. Antonio Paolilli (1524-1603) was a renowned jurist and legal scholar who served as a magistrate in the Papal court.
In the 17th century, the Paolilli family gained prominence in the Kingdom of Naples, where several members held positions of importance in the government and military. One notable figure was Giacomo Paolilli (1632-1701), a military commander who fought in the Wars of the Spanish Succession.
As the Paolilli family continued to spread throughout Italy, they also established branches in other parts of Europe. In the 18th century, a branch of the family settled in the Austro-Hungarian Empire, where they adopted the German spelling of the surname, Paulilli.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Paolilli, including:
1. Gian Battista Paolilli (1779-1851), an Italian painter and sculptor from Naples.
2. Carlo Paolilli (1892-1970), an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament.
3. Antonio Paolilli (1908-1985), an Italian theologian and philosopher who taught at the Pontifical Lateran University in Rome.
4. Enrico Paolilli (1932-2012), an Italian film director and screenwriter known for his work in the neorealist cinema movement.
5. Luciano Paolilli (born 1950), an Italian businessman and entrepreneur who founded the Paolilli Group, a multinational conglomerate.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Paolilli
Among Census respondents with the surname Paolilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Black (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Paolilli 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 Paolilli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.8% · 101
- Two or more races4.3% · 5
- Black or African American3.5% · 4
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Paolilli
Paolilli 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,304 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,616 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #135,837 | 114 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 8,304 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 1,616 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 Paolilli 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 | #144,141 | #145,757 | -1.1% |
| Count | 115 | 115 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Paolilli bearers went from 115 to 115 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 1,616 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #145,757.
FAQ
Paolilli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Paolilli?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Paolilli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Paolilli?
Paolilli ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Paolilli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Paolilli.
Has Paolilli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Paolilli went from 115 recorded bearers to 115. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Paolilli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Paolilli, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.3%) and Black (3.5%). 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 Paolilli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.8% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Paolilli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.8%), Two or More Races (4.3%), Black (3.5%). 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 Paolilli (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 Paolilli mean?
An Italian surname derived from the given name Paolo, meaning "little Paul". 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 Paolilli (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 share the surname Paolilli?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.