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

Ponze, 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 Ponze surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ponze in America

Ponze is the 115034th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ponze surname appeared 152 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 Ponze.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ponze 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 Ponze

The surname Ponze is believed to have originated in Italy during the 13th century. It is thought to have derived from the Italian word "ponza," which means "a small island or rock." This suggests that the name may have originated from a person who lived on or near a small island or rocky area.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Ponze can be found in historic documents from the region of Tuscany, Italy. One notable example is a record from 1287 that mentions a "Guido Ponze" residing in the city of Florence.

In the 14th century, the name began to appear in various manuscripts and records across other parts of Italy, including the regions of Umbria and Lazio. One such record from 1342 mentions a "Giovanni Ponze" who owned a vineyard near the town of Orvieto.

During the Renaissance period, the surname Ponze was associated with several notable figures. One of the most prominent was Bartolomeo Ponze (1470-1544), a renowned painter and architect from Florence who was commissioned to work on various churches and palaces in the city.

Another notable individual with the surname Ponze was Girolamo Ponze (1523-1592), a Venetian scholar and writer who authored several works on philosophy and theology. His most famous work was a treatise titled "De Immortalitate Animae" (On the Immortality of the Soul), published in 1572.

In the 17th century, the surname Ponze appeared in records from the city of Naples, where a family with this name was known for their involvement in the silk trade. One member of this family, Antonio Ponze (1612-1678), was a successful merchant who established a prosperous silk-weaving business.

Throughout the centuries, the surname Ponze has also been associated with various place names and their older spellings. For example, in the region of Tuscany, there is a small town called Ponzano, which may have been derived from the same root as the surname Ponze.

While the surname Ponze is not among the most common in Italy today, it continues to hold a rich historical legacy, with references spanning several centuries and various regions of the country.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ponze

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!