The Testa surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 8,694 people carried this name — #4,084 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 33,900 people counted. That is up 7% from 8,123 in 2000.
What the name means
The meaning of the Testa surname
From testa (“head”), hence a nickname for an exceptionally clever person or for a person with a remarkably large head.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Testa» (Italian), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 4,632 people named Testa live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 849 people named Testa.
268 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 56 départements, most often Paris.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
382 people named Testa live in Switzerland.
They live in 18 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Ticino.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 81 people named Testa live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Hainaut.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
20 people named Testa is counted in Sweden.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).
In print
Testa in American newspapers,
1886–1961.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 241,187 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Testa,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Pietro Testa 1611–1650 · painter -
Francesco Testa 1704–1773 · Catholic priest -
Matteo Gennaro Testa Piccolomini 1708–1782 · lawyer -
Domenico Testa 1746–1832 · writer -
Dante Testa 1861–1923 · actor
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 204 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Testa.
- Tescher 236 · U.S. census
- Tesi 241 · U.S. census
- Tessari 127 · U.S. census
- Tessaro 251 · U.S. census
- Tessier 4,394 · U.S. census
- Tesson 237 · U.S. census
- Testi 127 · U.S. census
- Teston 1,202 · U.S. census
- Testut 114 · U.S. census
- Teti 1,192 · U.S. census
- Teton 124 · U.S. census
- Tetreau 252 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Testa is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.