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

Pilla, 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 Pilla surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pilla in America

Pilla is the 15005th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pilla surname appeared 1,968 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Pilla.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pilla 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 Pilla

The surname PILLA has its origins in the Italian language and is believed to have first emerged in the region of Tuscany during the 13th century. It is derived from the Italian word "pilla," which means a small ball or sphere, suggesting that the name may have initially been a nickname for someone who worked with or made balls.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the PILLA surname can be found in the historic Florentine tax records of the late 13th century, where a certain "Gherardo Pilla" is mentioned as a resident of the city. This indicates that the name was already in use by that time.

In the 14th century, the PILLA name appeared in several documents from the town of Siena, including records of land ownership and legal transactions. One notable individual from this period was Bartolomeo Pilla, a merchant and member of the city's council, who lived between 1320 and 1387.

The PILLA surname also has connections to the small town of Pilla, located in the province of Campobasso in the Molise region of southern Italy. It is possible that some bearers of the name may have originated from this location or adopted the name as a reference to their place of origin.

In the 16th century, the PILLA name gained recognition through the work of Gian Vincenzo Pilla, a renowned Italian mathematician and astronomer who lived from 1535 to 1600. His contributions included the development of advanced methods for calculating planetary orbits and the publication of several influential treatises on astronomy.

Another notable figure with the PILLA surname was Leopoldo Pilla, an Italian philosopher and writer who lived from 1805 to 1848. He was known for his works on ethics and social philosophy, as well as his advocacy for political and social reforms in Italy during the early 19th century.

In more recent times, the PILLA surname has been associated with several notable individuals, such as Aldo Pilla, an Italian actor and filmmaker born in 1926, and Antonio Pilla, an Italian politician and member of the European Parliament who was born in 1934.

While the PILLA surname has its roots in Italy, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration, particularly to countries with significant Italian communities, such as the United States, Canada, and Argentina.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pilla

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

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

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

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