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

Pettineo, 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 Pettineo surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pettineo in America

Pettineo is the 129825th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pettineo surname appeared 131 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 Pettineo.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pettineo 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 Pettineo

The surname Pettineo has its origins in Italy, specifically in the region of Sicily. It is believed to have originated in the medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century, when surnames were beginning to be adopted more widely.

The name Pettineo is derived from the Italian words "petto" and "neo," which translate to "chest" and "black" respectively. This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname or personal identifier for an individual with a dark complexion or a distinctive physical feature related to their chest.

Records from the Sicilian town of Pettineo indicate that the surname was closely associated with this location, and it is likely that the surname originated from the place name itself. The town of Pettineo is located in the province of Messina, and its name can be traced back to ancient Greek and Latin roots, possibly referring to a small chest or box-shaped terrain feature.

One of the earliest known references to the surname Pettineo can be found in the Sicilian census records from the late 15th century, where several families with this surname are listed as residents of the town of Pettineo and surrounding areas.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Pettineo. One such person was Giovanni Pettineo (1524-1592), a Sicilian priest and scholar who authored several works on theology and philosophy during the Renaissance period. Another prominent figure was Maria Pettineo (1680-1756), a Sicilian noblewoman and landowner known for her philanthropy and support of the arts.

In the 19th century, Giuseppe Pettineo (1818-1892) was a Sicilian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian parliament. More recently, Salvatore Pettineo (1926-2010) was a respected Italian architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Palermo and other parts of Sicily.

The surname Pettineo has also been associated with various place names and locations in Sicily, such as the town of Pettineo itself, as well as the neighboring villages of Pettineo Superiore and Pettineo Inferiore. These place names have evolved over time, with variations in spelling and pronunciation reflecting the linguistic influences of different cultures and periods in Sicilian history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pettineo

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Pettineo, 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!