2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sarago
A surname potentially derived from the Italian word "saragò" meaning someone from the town of Saragozza.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 123 Americans carry the last name Sarago. That puts it at #151,639 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,786,621 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sarago 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
123
1 in 2,786,621
Census rank
#151,639
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
107
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 107 bearers of the surname Sarago in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 151639th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sarago, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sarago
The surname Sarago has its origins in Italy, dating back to the late medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Italian word "saraghina," which referred to a type of fishing net or weir used for catching sardines and other small fish. This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have been fishermen or individuals associated with the fishing industry.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Sarago surname can be found in the archives of the Republic of Venice, where a certain Domenico Sarago is mentioned in a document dated 1376. This indicates that the name was already in use by the 14th century in the Venetian region.
The Sarago family appeared to have a strong presence in the city of Naples and its surrounding areas during the 16th and 17th centuries. Several historical records from this period mention individuals with this surname, such as Francesco Sarago (1543-1612), a renowned painter and architect who worked on various churches and palaces in Naples.
In the 18th century, the Sarago name gained prominence in the Kingdom of Sicily, where a branch of the family settled. One notable figure from this time was Giuseppe Sarago (1720-1789), a Sicilian nobleman and landowner who served as a magistrate and held significant influence in the region.
Moving into the 19th century, the Sarago surname spread to other parts of Italy, including the northern regions. One prominent individual was Antonio Sarago (1825-1898), a lawyer and politician from Piedmont who served as a member of the Italian Parliament during the early years of the unified Kingdom of Italy.
Another noteworthy bearer of the Sarago name was Maria Sarago (1865-1942), a renowned opera singer from Naples who performed in several prestigious venues across Europe, including the Teatro San Carlo and La Scala.
While the Sarago surname is not among the most common Italian surnames, it has a rich history and has been carried by individuals from various walks of life, including artists, politicians, nobility, and performers, throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sarago
Among Census respondents with the surname Sarago, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Sarago 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 Sarago surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.8% · 79
- Hispanic or Latino19.6% · 21
- Two or more races4.7% · 5
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sarago
Sarago 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-8 bearers (-6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,193 places
2020
#151,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
-8 bearers (-7.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 7,498 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.5%) | Down 16,193 places |
| 2020 | #151,639 | 107 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-7.0%) | Down 7,498 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 Sarago 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 | #144,141 | #151,639 | -5.2% |
| Count | 115 | 107 | -7.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sarago bearers went from 115 to 107 (-7.0% change). The surname moved down 7,498 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #151,639.
FAQ
Sarago surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sarago?
Name Census estimates that about 123 living Americans carry the surname Sarago. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,786,621 residents.
How common is Sarago?
Sarago ranks #151,639 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 107 people with the surname Sarago. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (123), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Sarago.
Has Sarago become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sarago went from 115 recorded bearers to 107. That is a decrease of 8 (-7.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #151,639.
What does the Census say about the background of Sarago?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sarago, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (19.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Sarago in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.8% (79 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sarago appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.8%), Hispanic (19.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Sarago (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 Sarago mean?
A surname potentially derived from the Italian word "saragò" meaning someone from the town of Saragozza. 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 Sarago (0.04 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 people have the last name Sarago?
Want to know how many people have the last name Sarago? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.