2000
#50,903
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 385
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Raffaelli
An Italian surname derived from the given name Rafael, meaning "God has healed".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 427 Americans carry the last name Raffaelli. That puts it at #58,829 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 802,703 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Raffaelli 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
427
1 in 802,703
Census rank
#58,829
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
372
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 372 bearers of the surname Raffaelli in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 58829th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Raffaelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Raffaelli
The surname Raffaelli originated in Italy and can be traced back to the 13th century. It is derived from the Italian male given name Raffaello, which is the Italian form of the Hebrew name Raphael, meaning "God has healed." The name is believed to have originated in the region of Tuscany, particularly in the cities of Florence and Siena.
One of the earliest recorded examples of the surname Raffaelli can be found in a document from the city of Siena, dated 1289, where a certain Guido Raffaelli is mentioned as a merchant and landowner. Another early reference is found in a manuscript from the Florentine archives, dated 1327, which mentions a Neri Raffaelli, a prominent citizen of Florence.
The Raffaelli surname has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One of the most famous was Raffaello Santi, better known as Raphael (1483-1520), the renowned Italian Renaissance painter and architect. Although his surname was Santi, he was often referred to as Raffaello, which later became a common surname.
Another notable figure was Filippo Raffaelli (1633-1714), an Italian painter and engraver from Bergamo. His works can be found in various churches and galleries across Italy.
In the 19th century, Jean-François Raffaëlli (1850-1924) was a French painter and sculptor known for his depictions of Parisian street life and urban scenes. Although the spelling of his surname is slightly different, it is believed to have originated from the Italian Raffaelli.
In the field of literature, Sergio Raffaelli (1915-1994) was an Italian writer and journalist, best known for his novels and short stories set in the region of Emilia-Romagna.
More recently, Alessandro Raffaelli (born 1974) is an Italian footballer who played as a midfielder for several clubs in Italy's top divisions, including Fiorentina and Sampdoria.
While the Raffaelli surname is most commonly associated with Italy, it has also been found in other parts of Europe and the Americas, likely due to migration patterns throughout history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Raffaelli
Among Census respondents with the surname Raffaelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Raffaelli 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 Raffaelli surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 340
- Hispanic or Latino6.5% · 24
- Two or more races1.1% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 3
- Black or African American0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Raffaelli
Raffaelli 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
#56,073
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 365
-20 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 5,170 places
2020
#58,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 372
+7 bearers (+1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 2,756 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #50,903 | 385 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #56,073 | 365 | 0.12 | -20 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 5,170 places |
| 2020 | #58,829 | 372 | 0.12 | +7 bearers (+1.9%) | Down 2,756 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 Raffaelli 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 | #56,073 | #58,829 | -4.9% |
| Count | 365 | 372 | 1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.12 | 0.12 | 3.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Raffaelli bearers went from 365 to 372 (+1.9% change). The surname moved down 2,756 positions in the national ranking, going from #56,073 to #58,829.
FAQ
Raffaelli surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Raffaelli?
Name Census estimates that about 427 living Americans carry the surname Raffaelli. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 802,703 residents.
How common is Raffaelli?
Raffaelli ranks #58,829 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.12 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 372 people with the surname Raffaelli. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (427), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.12 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 Raffaelli.
Has Raffaelli become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Raffaelli went from 365 recorded bearers to 372. That is an increase of 7 (+1.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #56,073 to #58,829.
What does the Census say about the background of Raffaelli?
Among Census respondents with the surname Raffaelli, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.5%) and Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Raffaelli in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (340 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Raffaelli appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (6.5%), Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Raffaelli (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 Raffaelli mean?
An Italian surname derived from the given name Rafael, meaning "God has healed". 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 Raffaelli (0.12 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 Americans have the surname Raffaelli?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.