2000
#112,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 144
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Trifiro
An Italian surname derived from the Greek word "triphyllos" meaning "three-leaved" or "trefoil."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 212 Americans carry the last name Trifiro. That puts it at #103,399 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,616,766 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Trifiro 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
212
1 in 1,616,766
Census rank
#103,399
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
185
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 185 bearers of the surname Trifiro in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 103399th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Trifiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Trifiro
The surname Trifiro is of Italian origin, originating from the southern regions of Italy such as Sicily, Calabria, and Campania. The name is believed to have derived from the Greek word "triphyllos," which means "three-leaved" or "clover-like." This suggests that the name may have been given to someone who lived near a place abundant with clover or three-leaved plants.
The earliest known record of the surname Trifiro can be traced back to the 15th century in Sicily. One of the earliest documented instances is in the town of Messina, where a family by the name of Trifiro was mentioned in a local registry in 1492. The name was also found in various manuscripts and records from the 16th and 17th centuries in the towns of Palermo, Catania, and Reggio Calabria.
In the late 18th century, a notable figure named Giuseppe Trifiro (1738-1815) was a prominent lawyer and judge in the city of Palermo. He played a significant role in the legal reforms of the Sicilian judicial system during the Napoleonic era. Another individual of note was Rosario Trifiro (1869-1935), who was a renowned architect and urban planner in the city of Catania. He designed several iconic buildings and contributed to the city's urban development in the early 20th century.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Trifiro outside of Italy was Antonio Trifiro (1798-1876), who was born in Reggio Calabria but later emigrated to Buenos Aires, Argentina, in the 1820s. He became a successful businessman and landowner in the Argentine capital.
In the late 19th century, a prominent figure named Vincenzo Trifiro (1856-1932) was a celebrated poet and writer from the town of Milazzo, Sicily. His works were widely acclaimed and contributed to the literary renaissance of the Sicilian language during that period.
Another noteworthy individual was Maria Trifiro (1915-1998), a renowned opera singer from the city of Messina. She performed in several prestigious opera houses across Europe and was particularly known for her interpretations of the works of Giuseppe Verdi and Giacomo Puccini.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Trifiro
Among Census respondents with the surname Trifiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Trifiro 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 Trifiro surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 171
- Hispanic or Latino5.4% · 10
- Two or more races1.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Trifiro
Trifiro 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
#98,982
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 183
+39 bearers (+27.1%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 13,985 places
2020
#103,399
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 185
+2 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 4,417 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #112,967 | 144 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #98,982 | 183 | 0.06 | +39 bearers (+27.1%) | Up 13,985 places |
| 2020 | #103,399 | 185 | 0.06 | +2 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 4,417 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 Trifiro 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 | #98,982 | #103,399 | -4.5% |
| Count | 183 | 185 | 1.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.06 | 3.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Trifiro bearers went from 183 to 185 (+1.1% change). The surname moved down 4,417 positions in the national ranking, going from #98,982 to #103,399.
FAQ
Trifiro surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Trifiro?
Name Census estimates that about 212 living Americans carry the surname Trifiro. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,616,766 residents.
How common is Trifiro?
Trifiro ranks #103,399 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 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 185 people with the surname Trifiro. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (212), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 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 Trifiro.
Has Trifiro become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Trifiro went from 183 recorded bearers to 185. That is an increase of 2 (+1.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #98,982 to #103,399.
What does the Census say about the background of Trifiro?
Among Census respondents with the surname Trifiro, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.4%) and Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Trifiro in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (171 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Trifiro appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (5.4%), Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Trifiro (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 Trifiro mean?
An Italian surname derived from the Greek word "triphyllos" meaning "three-leaved" or "trefoil." 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 Trifiro (0.06 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 are called Trifiro?
Want to know how many people are called Trifiro? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.