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

Petta, 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 Petta surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Petta in America

Petta is the 33164th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Petta surname appeared 690 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Petta.

We can also compare 2010 data for Petta 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 Petta

The surname Petta has its origins in Italy, specifically in the southern regions such as Sicily and Calabria. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "petta," which means "breast" or "chest." This name likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone with a prominent chest or physical feature.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name Petta can be found in the "Codice Diplomatico dei Re Aragonesi," a collection of medieval documents from the 13th century. This document mentions a certain "Nicolaus Petta" from the city of Messina in Sicily.

Another notable historical figure bearing the surname Petta was Francesco Petta, a Sicilian painter and architect who lived in the 16th century. He is known for his contributions to the Baroque style of architecture and his works can be found in various churches and palaces across Sicily.

In the 17th century, a certain Giovanni Battista Petta was a prominent lawyer and jurist from Calabria. He authored several legal treatises and served as a judge in the city of Reggio Calabria.

During the 18th century, the Petta family had a strong presence in the town of Francavilla di Sicilia, near Messina. One notable member of this branch was Vincenzo Petta, a landowner and merchant who was involved in the local administration.

In the 19th century, Gaetano Petta was a Sicilian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament. He was born in Messina in 1830 and played an active role in the Italian unification movement.

It is worth noting that the name Petta may have also been derived from certain place names or geographic locations in southern Italy. For instance, the town of Pettano in the province of Reggio Calabria could have influenced the surname's origin.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Petta

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

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 Petta 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 Petta 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 Petta was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!