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

Puglisi, 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 Puglisi surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Puglisi in America

Puglisi is the 12212th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Puglisi surname appeared 2,550 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Puglisi.

We can also compare 2010 data for Puglisi 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 Puglisi

The surname Puglisi originated in Sicily, an island located in the Mediterranean Sea, off the southern coast of Italy. It traces its roots back to the medieval period, around the 11th or 12th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Italian word "pugliese," which means "from Puglia," a region in southern Italy.

The earliest known record of the Puglisi name appears in a document from the 13th century, where it is spelled "Puglese." This suggests that the family may have originally hailed from the Puglia region before settling in Sicily. Over time, the name evolved into its current spelling, Puglisi.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the Puglisi surname was Giovanni Puglisi, a Sicilian priest and canon lawyer who lived in the 15th century (c. 1420-1490). He served as a canon of the Cathedral of Palermo and was renowned for his expertise in canon law.

In the 16th century, a Puglisi family established themselves in the town of Alcamo, located in the province of Trapani, Sicily. This branch of the family produced several notable individuals, including Girolamo Puglisi (c. 1570-1635), a prominent lawyer and jurist.

The Puglisi name also gained prominence in the 17th century with the birth of Vincenzo Puglisi (1631-1707), a Sicilian painter known for his religious works and portraits. His paintings can be found in various churches and museums throughout Sicily.

Another notable figure was Giuseppe Puglisi (1856-1924), an Italian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies, representing the district of Termini Imerese in Sicily.

In more recent history, Blessed Pino Puglisi (1937-1993) was a Catholic priest and anti-mafia activist who was murdered by the Sicilian Mafia for his efforts to protect young people from the influence of organized crime. He was beatified by Pope John Paul II in 2013.

The Puglisi surname has a rich history rooted in Sicily, with various branches of the family contributing to the fields of law, art, politics, and religious activism over the centuries. Despite its Italian origins, the name has spread to other parts of the world through migration and continues to be carried on by individuals of Sicilian descent.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Puglisi

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Puglisi, 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!