Sanni last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Sanni

A surname of Nigerian origin, meaning "to walk with a swaying gait."

Sanni, 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 Sanni surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sanni in America

Sanni is the 56836th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sanni surname appeared 359 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 Sanni.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sanni 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 56836 95091 -50.36%
Count 359 178 67.41%
Proportion per 100k 0.12 0.07 52.63%

The history of the last name Sanni

The surname Sanni has its roots in Italy, where it originated in the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "sannio," which means "clown" or "jester." This suggests that the name may have been originally given to someone who worked as an entertainer or someone with a comedic personality.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Sanni can be found in the records of the city of Naples, where a man named Gian Battista Sanni was listed as a merchant and landowner in the year 1487. This indicates that the name had already gained some prominence in the region by that time.

In the 16th century, the name Sanni appeared in various Italian manuscripts and historical documents, including the writings of the famous Renaissance poet and playwright, Ludovico Ariosto. Ariosto mentioned a character named Sanni in his epic poem, Orlando Furioso, which was published in 1532.

As the Sanni family spread across Italy over the centuries, the name took on various spellings and regional variations. In the northern regions of Italy, it was sometimes spelled as "Sany" or "Sani," while in the south, it was more commonly written as "Sanni."

One notable bearer of the Sanni surname was Giacomo Sanni, an Italian painter and architect who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was known for his works in the churches and palaces of Naples and was considered a master of the Baroque style.

Another prominent figure with the Sanni name was Carlo Sanni, an Italian composer and music teacher who lived in the 18th century. He was known for his operas and sacred works, and served as the maestro di cappella (chapel master) at several churches in Rome.

In the 19th century, the Sanni surname was associated with several place names in Italy, such as Sanni Bardari, a small village in the province of Terni, and Sanni d'Aranco, a hamlet in the province of Lucca.

Other notable individuals with the Sanni surname include Antonio Sanni (1788-1866), an Italian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Neapolitan parliament, and Gaspare Sanni (1833-1901), an Italian painter and sculptor who was known for his works depicting scenes from Italian folklore and rural life.

Overall, the surname Sanni has a rich history that spans several centuries and has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including artists, musicians, politicians, and businessmen.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sanni

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

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 Sanni was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 8.36% 30
Non-Hispanic Black Only 86.91% 312
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races (S)% (S)
Hispanic Origin 3.06% 11

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 Sanni has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 8.36% 12.92% -42.86%
Black 86.91% 77.53% 11.41%
Asian and Pacific Islander (S)% 5.06% (S)%
American Indian and Alaskan Native 0.00% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races (S)% 3.37% (S)%
Hispanic 3.06% (S)% (S)%

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

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

Reference this page

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"Sanni last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/sanni-surname-popularity/.

"Sanni last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/sanni-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

Sanni last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/sanni-surname-popularity/.

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