2000
#9,097
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,302
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.22
Rare Last name
Perrotta
An Italian occupational surname referring to a maker of wigs or a wig seller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,874 Americans carry the last name Perrotta. That puts it at #11,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,260 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Perrotta 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
2.9K
1 in 119,260
Census rank
#11,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,506 bearers of the surname Perrotta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Perrotta, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Perrotta
The surname Perrotta has its origins in Italy, tracing back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "perrotta," meaning "small pear." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a nickname or descriptive term for someone who resembled a small pear or was associated with pear cultivation.
The earliest recorded instances of the Perrotta surname can be found in historical documents from the 14th and 15th centuries in regions like Campania, Calabria, and Sicily. These areas were known for their fertile lands and thriving agriculture, including the cultivation of various fruits like pears.
In the 16th century, there are records of a noble family named Perrotta in the city of Naples. One prominent member was Gian Domenico Perrotta, a renowned jurist and legal scholar who lived from 1525 to 1597. He authored several influential works on civil and ecclesiastical law during the Renaissance period.
Another notable figure bearing the Perrotta name was Tommaso Perrotta, a 17th-century painter from Naples who specialized in landscapes and religious scenes. His works can be found in various churches and galleries throughout Italy.
During the 18th century, the Perrotta surname appeared in various historical records from the Kingdom of Naples and the Kingdom of Sicily. One notable individual was Raffaele Perrotta, a philosopher and theologian born in Cosenza, Calabria, in 1738. He was known for his writings on metaphysics and ethics.
In the 19th century, the Perrotta name gained further recognition with the birth of Francesco Saverio Perrotta, a renowned Italian philologist and classical scholar. Born in Venosa, Basilicata, in 1867, he made significant contributions to the study of ancient Greek and Latin literature.
Throughout its history, the Perrotta surname has been associated with various professions, including law, art, philosophy, and academia. While its origins can be traced back to the Middle Ages in Italy, the name has since spread to other parts of the world due to migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Perrotta
Among Census respondents with the surname Perrotta, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (1.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Perrotta 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 Perrotta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 2,319
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 125
- Two or more races1.5% · 37
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 13
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Perrotta
Perrotta 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
#8,817
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,713
+411 bearers (+12.4%)
Per 100,000 1.26
Rank movement Up 280 places
2020
#11,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,506
-1,207 bearers (-32.5%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 3,118 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,097 | 3,302 | 1.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,817 | 3,713 | 1.26 | +411 bearers (+12.4%) | Up 280 places |
| 2020 | #11,935 | 2,506 | 0.84 | -1,207 bearers (-32.5%) | Down 3,118 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 Perrotta 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 | #8,817 | #11,935 | -35.4% |
| Count | 3,713 | 2,506 | -32.5% |
| Per 100K | 1.26 | 0.84 | -33.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Perrotta bearers went from 3,713 to 2,506 (-32.5% change). The surname moved down 3,118 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,817 to #11,935.
FAQ
Perrotta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Perrotta?
Name Census estimates that about 2,874 living Americans carry the surname Perrotta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,260 residents.
How common is Perrotta?
Perrotta ranks #11,935 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,506 people with the surname Perrotta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,874), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Perrotta.
Has Perrotta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Perrotta went from 3,713 recorded bearers to 2,506. That is a decrease of 1,207 (-32.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,817 to #11,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Perrotta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Perrotta, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Perrotta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (2,319 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Perrotta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (5.0%), Two or More Races (1.5%). 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 Perrotta (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 Perrotta mean?
An Italian occupational surname referring to a maker of wigs or a wig 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 Perrotta (0.84 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 common is the surname Perrotta?
See how common the surname Perrotta is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.