2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Polizzotti
Originating from an Italian place name likely referring to one's place of residence.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 120 Americans carry the last name Polizzotti. That puts it at #152,989 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,856,286 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Polizzotti 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
120
1 in 2,856,286
Census rank
#152,989
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
105
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 105 bearers of the surname Polizzotti in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 152989th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzotti, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Black (1.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Polizzotti
The surname Polizzotti is of Italian origin, originating from the island of Sicily during the medieval period. It is derived from the word "poliza," which means "certificate" or "receipt" in Italian, suggesting that the name may have been associated with someone who worked as a clerk or kept records.
One of the earliest known instances of the Polizzotti surname can be found in a historical document from the town of Palermo, Sicily, dated around the late 15th century. This document mentions a certain Antonino Polizzotti, who was a notary and scribe.
In the 16th century, the Polizzotti family was known to have resided in the town of Caltanissetta, located in the central region of Sicily. During this time, the spelling of the name varied slightly, appearing as "Polizotti" or "Polizzotta" in some records.
A notable figure with the Polizzotti surname was Vincenzo Polizzotti, born in 1777 in Caltanissetta. He was a prominent lawyer and politician who served as a judge and later became a member of the Sicilian Parliament in the early 19th century.
Another historical figure was Giuseppe Polizzotti, born in 1820 in Palermo. He was a renowned painter and sculptor, known for his works depicting religious themes and Sicilian landscapes.
In the late 19th century, the Polizzotti family began to spread beyond Sicily, with some members migrating to other parts of Italy and even to the United States. One such individual was Salvatore Polizzotti, born in 1865 in Caltanissetta, who immigrated to New York City in the early 1900s and worked as a tailor.
Another notable Polizzotti was Maria Polizzotti, born in 1890 in Palermo. She was a pioneering educator who established several schools and educational programs for underprivileged children in Sicily.
While the Polizzotti surname is not as common as some other Italian names, it has a rich history rooted in the cultural and administrative traditions of medieval Sicily.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Polizzotti
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzotti, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Black (1.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Polizzotti 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 Polizzotti surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.2% · 101
- Black or African American1.9% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Polizzotti
Polizzotti 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+14 bearers (+13.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,619 places
2020
#152,989
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 105
-15 bearers (-12.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,761 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +14 bearers (+13.2%) | Up 4,619 places |
| 2020 | #152,989 | 105 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-12.5%) | Down 13,761 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 Polizzotti 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 | #139,228 | #152,989 | -9.9% |
| Count | 120 | 105 | -12.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -12.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Polizzotti bearers went from 120 to 105 (-12.5% change). The surname moved down 13,761 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #152,989.
FAQ
Polizzotti surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Polizzotti?
Name Census estimates that about 120 living Americans carry the surname Polizzotti. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,856,286 residents.
How common is Polizzotti?
Polizzotti ranks #152,989 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 105 people with the surname Polizzotti. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (120), 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 Polizzotti.
Has Polizzotti become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Polizzotti went from 120 recorded bearers to 105. That is a decrease of 15 (-12.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #152,989.
What does the Census say about the background of Polizzotti?
Among Census respondents with the surname Polizzotti, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.2%. The next largest groups are Black (1.9%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Polizzotti in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.2% (101 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Polizzotti appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.2%), Black (1.9%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Polizzotti (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 Polizzotti mean?
Originating from an Italian place name likely referring to one's place of residence. 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 Polizzotti (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 share the surname Polizzotti?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.