2000
#28,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 804
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.30
Very Rare Last name
Zappala
An Italian surname derived from the word "zappa" meaning hoe or spade, indicating an agricultural background.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 823 Americans carry the last name Zappala. That puts it at #34,057 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.24 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 416,469 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Zappala 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
823
1 in 416,469
Census rank
#34,057
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
718
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 718 bearers of the surname Zappala in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.24 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 34057th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Zappala, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Zappala
The surname Zappala has its origins in Italy, specifically from the southern regions of the country. The earliest historical references to the surname can be traced back to the medieval period, with initial records emerging around the 12th and 13th centuries. The name is predominantly associated with the island of Sicily and the potentially neighboring areas of Calabria and Apulia. It is derived from the Sicilian word zappa, meaning "hoe" or "mattock," a tool used in agriculture and farming. This correlation suggests that the surname may have originally been an occupational name, given to those who worked as farmers or tillers of the land.
In Sicily, the Zappala family was noted in various old records and manuscripts, including land deeds and parish registers, where their contributions to agricultural development are mentioned. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in a Sicilian document from 1282, detailing a land transaction in which Antonius Zappala was listed as a witness. This early appearance underscores the surname's historical roots in the agricultural practices of the region.
Throughout history, the surname Zappala has been associated with notable individuals who have contributed significantly to Italian culture and society. For instance, Carmelo Zappala, born in 1784 and died in 1857, was a well-respected botanist whose extensive research on Mediterranean flora earned him recognition in academic circles. Another prominent figure is the 19th-century artist Giuseppe Zappala, born in 1821 and died in 1894, renowned for his landscape paintings that vividly captured the essence of rural Sicily.
Further enriching the surname's historical tapestry, Luigi Zappala, an influential political figure born in 1873 and died in 1925, played a pivotal role in the early 20th century's socio-political reforms in southern Italy. His efforts were instrumental in advocating for farmers' rights and improving agricultural policies. In the realm of science, Maria Zappala, born in 1902 and deceased in 1985, made significant contributions as an archaeologist, excavating and documenting ancient Sicilian sites that provided insights into early Mediterranean civilizations.
In more recent historical contexts, contemporary classical composer Francesco Zappala, born in 1943 and still a prominent figure, continues to bear the surname. His works, deeply inspired by traditional Sicilian themes, have been performed globally, cementing the legacy of the Zappala name in modern cultural expressions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Zappala
Among Census respondents with the surname Zappala, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Zappala 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 Zappala surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 640
- Hispanic or Latino8.4% · 60
- Two or more races1.9% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Zappala
Zappala 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
#30,139
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 778
-26 bearers (-3.2%)
Per 100,000 0.26
Rank movement Down 2,090 places
2020
#34,057
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 718
-60 bearers (-7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.24
Rank movement Down 3,918 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #28,049 | 804 | 0.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #30,139 | 778 | 0.26 | -26 bearers (-3.2%) | Down 2,090 places |
| 2020 | #34,057 | 718 | 0.24 | -60 bearers (-7.7%) | Down 3,918 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 Zappala 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 | #30,139 | #34,057 | -13.0% |
| Count | 778 | 718 | -7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.26 | 0.24 | -7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Zappala bearers went from 778 to 718 (-7.7% change). The surname moved down 3,918 positions in the national ranking, going from #30,139 to #34,057.
FAQ
Zappala surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Zappala?
Name Census estimates that about 823 living Americans carry the surname Zappala. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 416,469 residents.
How common is Zappala?
Zappala ranks #34,057 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.24 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 718 people with the surname Zappala. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (823), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.24 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.24 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 Zappala.
Has Zappala become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Zappala went from 778 recorded bearers to 718. That is a decrease of 60 (-7.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #30,139 to #34,057.
What does the Census say about the background of Zappala?
Among Census respondents with the surname Zappala, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.4%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Zappala in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (640 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Zappala appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Hispanic (8.4%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Zappala (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 Zappala mean?
An Italian surname derived from the word "zappa" meaning hoe or spade, indicating an agricultural background. 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 Zappala (0.24 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 Zappala?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Zappala at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.