Find out how popular the last name Pellegrino is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Pellegrino.

Pellegrino, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Pellegrino surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pellegrino in America

Pellegrino is the 4781st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pellegrino surname appeared 7,398 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 3 people would have the surname Pellegrino.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pellegrino to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Pellegrino

The surname Pellegrino is of Italian origin, deriving from the Italian word "pellegrino" which means "pilgrim." It first emerged in the regions of Italy during the Middle Ages, a time when pilgrimages to holy sites were common.

The earliest known historical record of the surname Pellegrino dates back to the late 13th century in the city of Florence. In 1289, a document from the Florentine archives mentions a certain "Guido Pellegrino," a merchant involved in the wool trade.

Over the centuries, the Pellegrino name spread to other parts of Italy, with notable bearers including Giovanni Pellegrino (1519-1596), a renowned Italian jurist and legal scholar who served as a professor at the University of Padua. Another prominent figure was Camillo Pellegrino (1598-1663), an Italian painter known for his religious works and frescoes in churches throughout Rome and Naples.

In the 16th century, the surname Pellegrino was found in the village of Pellegrino Parmense, located in the northern Italian region of Emilia-Romagna. It is believed that the village's name, which translates to "Pilgrim of Parma," may have influenced the surname's origins.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Pellegrino surname outside of Italy was in Spain, where it was documented as "Pelegrino" in the 15th century. This variation likely emerged due to the influence of Spanish orthography on the Italian name.

Another notable bearer of the Pellegrino surname was Gabriele Pellegrino Termine (1737-1808), an Italian philosopher and writer who advocated for the separation of church and state. Additionally, Vincenzo Pellegrino (1762-1842) was an Italian composer and violinist who served as the director of the Royal Chapel in Naples.

While the surname Pellegrino has its roots in Italy, it has since spread worldwide, with bearers found in various countries, particularly those with significant Italian immigrant populations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pellegrino

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Pellegrino.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Pellegrino was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Pellegrino has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Pellegrino was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Pellegrino, please contact us.

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