2000
#11,864
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,416
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Polizzi
A habitational surname referring to a person from Polizzi Generosa, a town in Sicily, Italy.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,553 Americans carry the last name Polizzi. That puts it at #13,165 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.74 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 134,256 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Polizzi 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
2.6K
1 in 134,256
Census rank
#13,165
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,226 bearers of the surname Polizzi in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.74 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13165th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzi, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and Two or More Races (1.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Polizzi
The surname Polizzi originated in Sicily, Italy, and can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. It is derived from the Italian word "Policium," which was the Latin name for the town of Polizzi Generosa, a hilltop town located in the Province of Palermo. The name likely originated as a way to identify people who came from or lived in that particular town.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Polizzi can be found in the Sicilian Riveli, which were tax records from the 15th century. In these records, several families with the surname Polizzi were listed as residents of Polizzi Generosa and the surrounding areas.
During the Renaissance period, the name Polizzi began to spread beyond the confines of Sicily. In the 16th century, a notable figure named Vincenzo Polizzi (1515-1589) was a prominent lawyer and jurist who served as a judge in the city of Naples.
In the 17th century, the surname Polizzi appeared in various historical documents from the Kingdom of Sicily, including birth and marriage records. One notable individual from this period was Giuseppe Polizzi (1630-1702), who was a respected scholar and author of several religious texts.
As Sicilians emigrated to other parts of Europe and the Americas in the 19th and early 20th centuries, the surname Polizzi became more widespread. One famous bearer of the name was the Sicilian artist Renato Polizzi (1857-1924), who was known for his evocative paintings of Sicilian landscapes and rural life.
Another notable figure was the Italian-American actor and singer Tony Polizzi (1923-2008), who appeared in several films and television shows throughout his career, including "The Untouchables" and "The Godfather: Part II."
Other individuals with the surname Polizzi who left their mark on history include the Italian architect Gaetano Polizzi (1876-1957), who designed numerous buildings in Palermo and other cities in Sicily, and the Italian-American author and poet Joseph Polizzi (1936-2022), whose works explored themes of identity, immigration, and cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Polizzi
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzi, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and Two or More Races (1.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Polizzi 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 Polizzi surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 2,037
- Hispanic or Latino6.1% · 135
- Two or more races1.3% · 30
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Polizzi
Polizzi 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
#12,662
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,441
+25 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 798 places
2020
#13,165
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,226
-215 bearers (-8.8%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 503 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,864 | 2,416 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,662 | 2,441 | 0.83 | +25 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 798 places |
| 2020 | #13,165 | 2,226 | 0.74 | -215 bearers (-8.8%) | Down 503 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 Polizzi 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 | #12,662 | #13,165 | -4.0% |
| Count | 2,441 | 2,226 | -8.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.83 | 0.74 | -10.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Polizzi bearers went from 2,441 to 2,226 (-8.8% change). The surname moved down 503 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,662 to #13,165.
FAQ
Polizzi surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Polizzi?
Name Census estimates that about 2,553 living Americans carry the surname Polizzi. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 134,256 residents.
How common is Polizzi?
Polizzi ranks #13,165 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.74 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 2,226 people with the surname Polizzi. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,553), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.74 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.74 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 Polizzi.
Has Polizzi become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Polizzi went from 2,441 recorded bearers to 2,226. That is a decrease of 215 (-8.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,662 to #13,165.
What does the Census say about the background of Polizzi?
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzi, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.1%) and Two or More Races (1.3%). 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 Polizzi in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (2,037 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Polizzi appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Hispanic (6.1%), Two or More Races (1.3%). 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 Polizzi (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 Polizzi mean?
A habitational surname referring to a person from Polizzi Generosa, a town in Sicily, Italy. 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 Polizzi (0.74 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 Polizzi?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Polizzi, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.