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

Pona, 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 Pona surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pona in America

Pona is the 93921st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pona surname appeared 195 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Pona.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pona 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 Pona

The surname PONA originated in Italy during the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Latin word "pons," meaning "bridge," which suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have lived near a bridge or worked as bridge builders or toll collectors.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the PONA surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval documents from the Campania region of Italy, dating back to the 11th century. This document mentions a certain "Petrus Pona" who was involved in a land dispute.

In the 13th century, a nobleman named Giacomo PONA was mentioned in the records of the city of Verona. He was a prominent landowner and is believed to have been the progenitor of a noble family that bore the PONA surname for generations.

During the Renaissance period, a notable figure with the PONA surname was Giovanni PONA, a naturalist and botanist from Verona, who lived from 1565 to 1630. He authored several works on plant life and is considered one of the pioneers of modern botany.

Another notable PONA was Francesco PONA, a 17th-century physician and philosopher from Venice. He wrote extensively on medical topics and was a proponent of the empirical scientific method.

In the 18th century, a man named Giambattista PONA was a celebrated artist and sculptor from the town of Bassano del Grappa, in the Veneto region of Italy. His works can still be found in various churches and palaces throughout the region.

It's worth noting that variations of the PONA surname, such as PONTI and PONTE, also emerged over time, possibly due to regional dialects or spelling changes. These variations may have originated from the same root word and shared a similar meaning related to bridges or river crossings.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pona

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

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

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

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