2000
#120,330
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 133
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sonza
Spanish surname possibly related to the Spanish province of Soria.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 256 Americans carry the last name Sonza. That puts it at #89,231 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,338,884 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sonza 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
256
1 in 1,338,884
Census rank
#89,231
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
223
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 223 bearers of the surname Sonza in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 89231st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonza, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Hispanic (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sonza
The surname SONZA has its origins in Italy, tracing back to the medieval period around the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Italian word "sonza," which means "fat" or "plump." This suggests that the name may have been initially given as a nickname or descriptive name for someone with a larger physical stature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the SONZA surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval documents from the Monastery of Cava in Southern Italy, dating back to the late 11th century. In this manuscript, a certain "Petrus Sonza" is mentioned as a witness to a legal transaction.
During the 13th century, the SONZA name appears to have been concentrated in the regions of Lombardy and Veneto in northern Italy. Historical records from this era show variations in spelling, such as "Sonzia" and "Sonzia."
In the 14th century, a notable figure bearing the SONZA surname was Jacopo SONZA, a Venetian merchant and trader who established trade routes with the Byzantine Empire and the Middle East. He was born in 1312 and passed away in 1387.
The SONZA name also has connections to certain place names in Italy. For instance, the town of Soncino in the province of Cremona, Lombardy, shares a similar root with the surname. This town was once known as "Sonzino" in ancient times, suggesting a possible link between the surname and the local geography.
Another prominent individual with the SONZA surname was Giovanni SONZA, a Renaissance humanist scholar and writer who lived from 1458 to 1521. He was born in Padua and is known for his works on philosophy and literature.
In the late 16th century, a branch of the SONZA family migrated to the island of Crete, then under Venetian rule. Records from this period mention a certain Antonio SONZA, a military officer and administrator in the Venetian army, who served on the island from 1586 to 1598.
During the 17th century, the SONZA surname spread further across Italy, with notable individuals including Girolamo SONZA, a renowned painter from Milan who lived from 1612 to 1688, and Tommaso SONZA, a Venetian architect and engineer who contributed to the construction of several churches and palaces in Venice between 1638 and 1701.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sonza
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonza, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Hispanic (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Sonza 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 Sonza surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander77.6% · 173
- White12.6% · 28
- Hispanic or Latino4.9% · 11
- Two or more races3.1% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 3
- Black or African American0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sonza
Sonza 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
#95,955
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 190
+57 bearers (+42.9%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 24,375 places
2020
#89,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 223
+33 bearers (+17.4%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 6,724 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #120,330 | 133 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #95,955 | 190 | 0.06 | +57 bearers (+42.9%) | Up 24,375 places |
| 2020 | #89,231 | 223 | 0.07 | +33 bearers (+17.4%) | Up 6,724 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 Sonza 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 | #95,955 | #89,231 | 7.0% |
| Count | 190 | 223 | 17.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.07 | 24.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sonza bearers went from 190 to 223 (+17.4% change). The surname moved up 6,724 positions in the national ranking, going from #95,955 to #89,231.
FAQ
Sonza surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sonza?
Name Census estimates that about 256 living Americans carry the surname Sonza. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,338,884 residents.
How common is Sonza?
Sonza ranks #89,231 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.07 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 223 people with the surname Sonza. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (256), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.07 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 Sonza.
Has Sonza become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sonza went from 190 recorded bearers to 223. That is an increase of 33 (+17.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #95,955 to #89,231.
What does the Census say about the background of Sonza?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sonza, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 77.6%. The next largest groups are White (12.6%) and Hispanic (4.9%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Sonza in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.6% (173 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sonza appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (77.6%), White (12.6%), Hispanic (4.9%). 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 Sonza (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 Sonza mean?
Spanish surname possibly related to the Spanish province of Soria. 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 Sonza (0.07 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 Sonza?
If you just want to know how many people are called Sonza, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.