2000
#12,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,337
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.87
Rare Last name
Piscitelli
Derived from the Italian word "piscitello," meaning a seller of fish or fisherman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,096 Americans carry the last name Piscitelli. That puts it at #15,443 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 163,528 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Piscitelli 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
2.1K
1 in 163,528
Census rank
#15,443
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,828 bearers of the surname Piscitelli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15443rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Piscitelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Piscitelli
The surname Piscitelli originated in Italy, with its earliest known origins traced back to the medieval period in the southern regions of Campania and Basilicata. The name is derived from the Italian word "piscitello," which means "small fish," suggesting a connection to the fishing industry or proximity to bodies of water.
During the Middle Ages, the name Piscitelli appeared in several historical documents and records from the Kingdom of Naples and the surrounding areas. One notable mention is found in the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval charters from the Benedictine monastery of Cava de' Tirreni, dating back to the 11th century.
In the 14th century, a branch of the Piscitelli family relocated to the town of Fontanarosa, in the province of Avellino, where they became landowners and established themselves as a prominent local family. Historical records from this period include mentions of individuals such as Pietro Piscitelli (born c. 1320) and Giacomo Piscitelli (c. 1375-1440), who held influential positions in the town's administration.
As the Piscitelli name spread across Italy, variations in spelling emerged, including Piscitelli, Piscitello, and Piscitella. These variations often reflected regional dialects and local pronunciation of the name. One notable individual from this era was Giovanni Piscitella (c. 1480-1555), a renowned painter and architect from Naples.
In the 18th century, the Piscitelli family gained further prominence with the birth of Nicola Piscitelli (1718-1798), a celebrated Italian jurist and legal scholar. His treatise on feudal law, "Trattato dei Feudi," published in 1755, became a seminal work in the field.
Another notable figure was Giuseppe Piscitelli (1834-1912), an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Italian Parliament and played a significant role in the unification of Italy. He was born in Potenza, Basilicata, and his contributions to the nation's legal and political spheres earned him widespread recognition.
Throughout history, the Piscitelli name has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including artists, scholars, politicians, and professionals. While the name's origins lie in the fishing industry and coastal regions of southern Italy, it has since spread across the country and beyond, leaving an indelible mark on Italian history and culture.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Piscitelli
Among Census respondents with the surname Piscitelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Piscitelli 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 Piscitelli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 1,691
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 77
- Two or more races2.0% · 36
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 14
- Black or African American0.4% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Piscitelli
Piscitelli 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
#12,531
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,473
+136 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 310 places
2020
#15,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,828
-645 bearers (-26.1%)
Per 100,000 0.61
Rank movement Down 2,912 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,221 | 2,337 | 0.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,531 | 2,473 | 0.84 | +136 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 310 places |
| 2020 | #15,443 | 1,828 | 0.61 | -645 bearers (-26.1%) | Down 2,912 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 Piscitelli 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 | #12,531 | #15,443 | -23.2% |
| Count | 2,473 | 1,828 | -26.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.84 | 0.61 | -27.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Piscitelli bearers went from 2,473 to 1,828 (-26.1% change). The surname moved down 2,912 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,531 to #15,443.
FAQ
Piscitelli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Piscitelli?
Name Census estimates that about 2,096 living Americans carry the surname Piscitelli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 163,528 residents.
How common is Piscitelli?
Piscitelli ranks #15,443 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.61 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,828 people with the surname Piscitelli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,096), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.61 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Piscitelli.
Has Piscitelli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Piscitelli went from 2,473 recorded bearers to 1,828. That is a decrease of 645 (-26.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,531 to #15,443.
What does the Census say about the background of Piscitelli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Piscitelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Piscitelli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (1,691 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Piscitelli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Piscitelli (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 Piscitelli mean?
Derived from the Italian word "piscitello," meaning a seller of fish or fisherman. 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 Piscitelli (0.61 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 Americans have the surname Piscitelli?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.