2000
#39,678
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 521
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Presta
Meaning "excellent, remarkable" in Italian.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 675 Americans carry the last name Presta. That puts it at #40,169 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 507,784 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Presta 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
675
1 in 507,784
Census rank
#40,169
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
589
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 589 bearers of the surname Presta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 40169th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Presta, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Presta
The surname Presta is believed to have originated in Italy, specifically in the regions of Tuscany and Umbria, during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Italian word "prest," which means "fast" or "swift," and was likely used as a descriptive nickname for someone with a quick or agile nature.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Presta can be found in the Florentine archives dating back to the 13th century, where a certain Guido Presta was mentioned as a merchant residing in the city of Florence. This suggests that the name was already in use during that time period.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various historical records, including a legal document from the city of Perugia, which referenced a Giovanni Presta, a local landowner. This provides evidence that the name had spread to other regions of central Italy by that time.
The name Presta is also linked to several place names in Italy, such as Presta, a small village in the province of Siena, Tuscany. It is possible that the surname was derived from this or a similar place name, as was common practice during the Middle Ages.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the surname Presta:
1. Ludovico Presta (1535-1608), an Italian painter and architect from Perugia, known for his work on the Cathedral of Spoleto.
2. Giovanni Battista Presta (1610-1675), an Italian sculptor and architect from Naples, renowned for his sculptures in the Certosa di San Martino.
3. Domenico Presta (1701-1773), an Italian painter and engraver from Naples, known for his religious paintings and etchings.
4. Francesco Presta (1810-1892), an Italian politician and lawyer from Calabria, who served as a member of the Italian Parliament.
5. Vincenzo Presta (1833-1905), an Italian opera composer and music teacher from Naples, known for his operas and compositions for voice and piano.
While the surname Presta may not be as widely known as some other Italian surnames, it has a rich history that can be traced back to the Middle Ages, with its origins rooted in the picturesque regions of Tuscany and Umbria.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Presta
Among Census respondents with the surname Presta, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Presta 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 Presta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.4% · 515
- Hispanic or Latino8.5% · 50
- Two or more races2.2% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 7
- Black or African American0.5% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Presta
Presta 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
#38,265
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 579
+58 bearers (+11.1%)
Per 100,000 0.20
Rank movement Up 1,413 places
2020
#40,169
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 589
+10 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.20
Rank movement Down 1,904 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #39,678 | 521 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #38,265 | 579 | 0.20 | +58 bearers (+11.1%) | Up 1,413 places |
| 2020 | #40,169 | 589 | 0.20 | +10 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 1,904 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 Presta 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 | #38,265 | #40,169 | -5.0% |
| Count | 579 | 589 | 1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.20 | 0.20 | -1.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Presta bearers went from 579 to 589 (+1.7% change). The surname moved down 1,904 positions in the national ranking, going from #38,265 to #40,169.
FAQ
Presta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Presta?
Name Census estimates that about 675 living Americans carry the surname Presta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 507,784 residents.
How common is Presta?
Presta ranks #40,169 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.20 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 589 people with the surname Presta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (675), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.20 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 Presta.
Has Presta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Presta went from 579 recorded bearers to 589. That is an increase of 10 (+1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #38,265 to #40,169.
What does the Census say about the background of Presta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Presta, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (8.5%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Presta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.4% (515 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Presta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.4%), Hispanic (8.5%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Presta (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 Presta mean?
Meaning "excellent, remarkable" in Italian. 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 Presta (0.20 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 common is the surname Presta?
Want to know how many people have the surname Presta? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.