2010
#136,449
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Petrungaro
A surname originating from southern Italy, likely derived from a regional location or topographic feature.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Petrungaro. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Petrungaro 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Petrungaro in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrungaro, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Petrungaro
The surname Petrungaro originated in Italy, likely in the southern regions of Campania or Basilicata, during the medieval period. It is derived from the Italian words "pietra" meaning stone and "angaro" which may have its roots in the Greek word "angareuo" meaning to press or force labor.
Petrungaro was likely an occupational surname given to those who worked as stonemasons or quarrymen, possibly forced into such labor. The name may have been associated with the construction of castles, churches, or other stone structures in the region during the 10th to 13th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Petrungaro can be found in a document from the town of Potenza, in the province of Basilicata, dated 1287. This document mentions a certain Guglielmo Petrungaro, who was a local landowner and stonemason.
Another early reference to the name can be found in the records of the Angevin dynasty, which ruled over the Kingdom of Naples and Sicily from 1266 to 1442. These records mention a Gian Battista Petrungaro, who served as a master stonemason and architect for the royal court in the late 14th century.
During the Renaissance period, the name Petrungaro was associated with several notable artists and architects. One such figure was Giulio Petrungaro, a sculptor born in Naples in 1520, who was renowned for his intricate marble carvings adorning churches and palaces throughout Italy.
Another notable bearer of the name was Vincenzo Petrungaro, an architect born in Salerno in 1612, who designed several churches and public buildings in Naples and the surrounding region. His most famous work is the Chiesa di Santa Maria della Sanità, a stunning Baroque-style church in the heart of Naples.
In the 18th century, a Petrungaro family from the town of Matera, in Basilicata, produced several successful merchants and bankers. One member of this family, Antonio Petrungaro, born in 1745, became a prominent financier and philanthropist, known for his support of local schools and hospitals.
Throughout its history, the surname Petrungaro has remained strongly associated with the regions of Campania and Basilicata in southern Italy, where it originated centuries ago. While not a particularly common name, it has left its mark on the artistic and architectural heritage of the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Petrungaro
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrungaro, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Petrungaro 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 Petrungaro surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino6.2% · 7
- Two or more races2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Petrungaro
Petrungaro 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
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
-10 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 10,772 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #136,449 | 123 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 10,772 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 Petrungaro 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 | #136,449 | #147,221 | -7.9% |
| Count | 123 | 113 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Petrungaro bearers went from 123 to 113 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 10,772 positions in the national ranking, going from #136,449 to #147,221.
FAQ
Petrungaro surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Petrungaro?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Petrungaro. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Petrungaro?
Petrungaro ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Petrungaro. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Petrungaro.
Has Petrungaro become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Petrungaro went from 123 recorded bearers to 113. That is a decrease of 10 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #136,449 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Petrungaro?
Among Census respondents with the surname Petrungaro, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Petrungaro in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Petrungaro appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Hispanic (6.2%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Petrungaro (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 Petrungaro mean?
A surname originating from southern Italy, likely derived from a regional location or topographic feature. 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 Petrungaro (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 are called Petrungaro?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the last name Petrungaro at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.