2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Pezzillo
An Italian surname derived from the Italian word "pezzo" meaning a piece or piece of land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Pezzillo. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pezzillo 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Pezzillo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pezzillo, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pezzillo
The surname Pezzillo is of Italian origin and can be traced back to the regions of Campania and Calabria in southern Italy. It is believed to have originated from the Latin word "pettia," which referred to a small plot of land or a piece of property.
In the early medieval period, many people were identified by their occupation or the land they owned. The name Pezzillo likely emerged as a way to distinguish families who owned or worked on small plots of land, known as "pezzi" in Italian.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Pezzillo can be found in a document from the 13th century, which mentions a certain "Guilielmus Pezzillo" from the town of Salerno, in the region of Campania. This suggests that the name was already established in that area by that time.
In the 15th century, there are records of a noble family named Pezzillo residing in the city of Naples. One notable member of this family was Giovanni Pezzillo (1425-1498), a renowned jurist and professor of law at the University of Naples.
Throughout the centuries, the name Pezzillo has appeared in various historical documents and records across southern Italy. For instance, in the 17th century, there are mentions of a poet named Giambattista Pezzillo (1612-1678) from the town of Vico Equense, near Naples.
Another prominent figure with the surname Pezzillo was Francesco Pezzillo (1766-1842), a Neapolitan painter and engraver who is known for his landscapes and vedute (cityscape paintings) of Naples and its surroundings.
In the 19th century, the name Pezzillo can be found in various military records, including those of Nicola Pezzillo (1821-1892), a soldier who fought in the Italian Unification Wars and later became a general in the Italian Army.
The surname Pezzillo has also been associated with several place names in southern Italy, such as the town of Pezzillo in the province of Avellino, Campania, and the hamlet of Pezzilli in the province of Chieti, Abruzzo.
Over the centuries, variations in the spelling of the name have emerged, including Pezzilli, Pezzillo, and Pezillo, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic variations within Italy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pezzillo
Among Census respondents with the surname Pezzillo, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Pezzillo 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 Pezzillo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.7% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pezzillo
Pezzillo 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
#149,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-7 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,281 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
+1 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 730 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #149,395 | 110 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 16,281 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.9%) | Up 730 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 Pezzillo 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 | #149,395 | #148,665 | 0.5% |
| Count | 110 | 111 | 0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pezzillo bearers went from 110 to 111 (+0.9% change). The surname moved up 730 positions in the national ranking, going from #149,395 to #148,665.
FAQ
Pezzillo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pezzillo?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Pezzillo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Pezzillo?
Pezzillo ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Pezzillo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Pezzillo.
Has Pezzillo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pezzillo went from 110 recorded bearers to 111. That is an increase of 1 (+0.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #149,395 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Pezzillo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pezzillo, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Pezzillo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.7% (104 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pezzillo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.7%), Hispanic (1.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Pezzillo (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 Pezzillo mean?
An Italian surname derived from the Italian word "pezzo" meaning a piece or piece of land. 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 Pezzillo (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 have the last name Pezzillo?
Want to know how many people are called Pezzillo? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.