2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Scarpitta
Occupational surname likely referring to a maker or seller of shoes.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 130 Americans carry the last name Scarpitta. That puts it at #147,221 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,636,572 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Scarpitta 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
130
1 in 2,636,572
Census rank
#147,221
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
113
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 113 bearers of the surname Scarpitta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147221st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Scarpitta, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (24.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Scarpitta
The surname Scarpitta is of Italian origin, specifically from the regions of Sicily and Calabria in southern Italy. It is believed to have originated in the 14th or 15th century, derived from the Italian word "scarpa," meaning shoe or slipper.
This surname may have been initially given as an occupational name to a shoemaker or someone involved in the trade of making or selling shoes. It is also possible that the name was initially a nickname for someone who wore distinctive or unusual shoes.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Scarpitta can be found in the 16th-century records of the town of Messina, Sicily. The name is also mentioned in the 17th-century census records of the town of Reggio Calabria, located in the region of Calabria.
In the 18th century, the Scarpitta family was known to have resided in the town of Palermo, Sicily, where several members were involved in the local trade and merchant guilds. One notable individual from this time was Antonio Scarpitta, a merchant and landowner born in 1742 in Palermo.
As the Scarpitta family expanded and migrated to other parts of Italy and beyond, variations in the spelling of the name emerged, such as Scarpetta, Scarpitti, and Scarpitti.
In the late 19th century, Vincenzo Scarpitta (1858-1932), an Italian painter and sculptor, gained recognition for his works depicting scenes from everyday life in Sicily. He was born in Bagheria, near Palermo, and his works can be found in various museums and galleries across Italy.
Another notable individual with the surname Scarpitta was Salvatore Scarpitta (1919-2007), an Italian-American artist and sculptor known for his unique assemblage sculptures made from various materials, including canvas, wood, and metal. He was born in New York City to Sicilian immigrants and spent much of his career working and exhibiting in the United States.
Giuseppe Scarpitta (1887-1964) was an Italian politician and lawyer from Palermo, Sicily, who served as a member of the Chamber of Deputies, the lower house of the Italian Parliament, in the 1920s and 1930s.
While the Scarpitta surname is most prevalent in Italy, particularly in the southern regions of Sicily and Calabria, it has also spread to other parts of the world due to Italian emigration over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Scarpitta
Among Census respondents with the surname Scarpitta, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (24.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Scarpitta 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 Scarpitta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White69.0% · 78
- Hispanic or Latino24.8% · 28
- Two or more races3.5% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Scarpitta
Scarpitta 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
#152,628
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
+3 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,617 places
2020
#147,221
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+6 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,407 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #146,011 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #152,628 | 107 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 6,617 places |
| 2020 | #147,221 | 113 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.6%) | Up 5,407 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 Scarpitta 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 | #152,628 | #147,221 | 3.5% |
| Count | 107 | 113 | 5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Scarpitta bearers went from 107 to 113 (+5.6% change). The surname moved up 5,407 positions in the national ranking, going from #152,628 to #147,221.
FAQ
Scarpitta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Scarpitta?
Name Census estimates that about 130 living Americans carry the surname Scarpitta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,636,572 residents.
How common is Scarpitta?
Scarpitta ranks #147,221 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 113 people with the surname Scarpitta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (130), 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 Scarpitta.
Has Scarpitta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Scarpitta went from 107 recorded bearers to 113. That is an increase of 6 (+5.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #152,628 to #147,221.
What does the Census say about the background of Scarpitta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Scarpitta, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (24.8%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Scarpitta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.0% (78 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Scarpitta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (69.0%), Hispanic (24.8%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Scarpitta (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 Scarpitta mean?
Occupational surname likely referring to a maker or seller of shoes. 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 Scarpitta (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 Scarpitta?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Scarpitta on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.