2000
#119,644
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 134
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Pirrera
A Sicilian surname derived from the word "pirrera" meaning "stone quarry" or "quarryman".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Pirrera. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Pirrera 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Pirrera in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Pirrera, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Black (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Pirrera
The surname Pirrera has its origins in Sicily, Italy, dating back to the 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "pirrera," which means a person who makes or sells stone pestles used for grinding spices, herbs, and medicines. The name may also be related to the Sicilian word "pirru," which means a sharp pointed instrument or tool.
The earliest recorded mention of the Pirrera surname can be found in the archives of the Cathedral of Palermo, where a certain Antonino Pirrera is listed as a resident of the city in the year 1472. Another early reference comes from the town of Monreale, near Palermo, where a family by the name of Pirrera is recorded as owning land and properties in the late 16th century.
One notable individual bearing the Pirrera surname was Giovanni Battista Pirrera, a renowned Sicilian botanist and naturalist who lived from 1783 to 1863. He was the author of several important works on the flora of Sicily and made significant contributions to the study of botany in the region.
Another notable figure was Rocco Pirrera, a Sicilian patriot and revolutionary who fought against the Bourbon monarchy in the early 19th century. He was born in Palermo in 1789 and played a prominent role in the uprisings of 1848 and 1860, which ultimately led to the unification of Italy.
In the 20th century, Vincenzo Pirrera (1895-1972) was a respected Sicilian historian and archivist who authored several books on the history and culture of Palermo and its surrounding areas. He served as the director of the State Archives of Palermo for many years.
The Pirrera surname has also been associated with several small towns and villages in Sicily, such as Pirrera di Monreale, Pirrera di Bagheria, and Pirrera di Santa Flavia, which may have been named after families bearing this name who resided in these areas.
It is worth noting that the surname Pirrera has also been found in other parts of Italy, particularly in the regions of Calabria and Campania, although it is believed to have originated in Sicily and later spread to other areas through migration and intermarriage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Pirrera
Among Census respondents with the surname Pirrera, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Black (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Pirrera 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 Pirrera surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 108
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Pirrera
Pirrera 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
#137,327
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 122
-12 bearers (-9.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,683 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-7 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,430 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #119,644 | 134 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #137,327 | 122 | 0.04 | -12 bearers (-9.0%) | Down 17,683 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -7 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 8,430 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 Pirrera 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 | #137,327 | #145,757 | -6.1% |
| Count | 122 | 115 | -5.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Pirrera bearers went from 122 to 115 (-5.7% change). The surname moved down 8,430 positions in the national ranking, going from #137,327 to #145,757.
FAQ
Pirrera surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Pirrera?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Pirrera. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Pirrera?
Pirrera ranks #145,757 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 115 people with the surname Pirrera. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), 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 Pirrera.
Has Pirrera become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Pirrera went from 122 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 7 (-5.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #137,327 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Pirrera?
Among Census respondents with the surname Pirrera, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.6%) and Black (0.9%). 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 Pirrera in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (108 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Pirrera appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (2.6%), Black (0.9%). 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 Pirrera (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 Pirrera mean?
A Sicilian surname derived from the word "pirrera" meaning "stone quarry" or "quarryman". 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 Pirrera (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 Pirrera?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Pirrera, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.