Rizzo () is a surname of Italian origin, denoting a person with curly hair or a variation of the surnames Ricci and Risso.

Geographical distribution

As of 2014, 55.1% of all known bearers of the surname ''Rizzo'' were residents of

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

(frequency 1:786), 18.2% of the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

(1:14,059), 7.9% of

Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...

(1:18,357), 5.1% of

Argentina Argentina, officially the Argentine Republic, is a country in the southern half of South America. It covers an area of , making it the List of South American countries by area, second-largest country in South America after Brazil, the fourt ...

(1:5,960), 3.3% of

Ecuador Ecuador, officially the Republic of Ecuador, is a country in northwestern South America, bordered by Colombia on the north, Peru on the east and south, and the Pacific Ocean on the west. It also includes the Galápagos Province which contain ...

(1:3,422), 2.4% of

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

(1:19,532), 1.1% of

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

(1:7,505), 1.0% of

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its Provinces and territories of Canada, ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, making it the world's List of coun ...

(1:27,097) and 0.01% of

Corfu Corfu ( , ) or Kerkyra (, ) is a Greece, Greek island in the Ionian Sea, of the Ionian Islands; including its Greek islands, small satellite islands, it forms the margin of Greece's northwestern frontier. The island is part of the Corfu (regio ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

(1:10). In

, the frequency of the surname was higher than national average (1:786) in the following regions: * 1.

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

(1:234) * 2.

Apulia Apulia ( ), also known by its Italian language, Italian name Puglia (), is a Regions of Italy, region of Italy, located in the Southern Italy, southern peninsular section of the country, bordering the Adriatic Sea to the east, the Strait of Ot ...

(1:261) * 3.

Calabria Calabria is a Regions of Italy, region in Southern Italy. It is a peninsula bordered by the region Basilicata to the north, the Ionian Sea to the east, the Strait of Messina to the southwest, which separates it from Sicily, and the Tyrrhenian S ...

(1:374) * 4.

Veneto Veneto, officially the Region of Veneto, is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the Northeast Italy, north-east of the country. It is the fourth most populous region in Italy, with a population of 4,851,851 as of 2025. Venice is t ...

(1:699) In

, the frequency of the surname was higher than national average (1:3,422) in the following provinces:Rizzo surname distribution
/ref> * 1. Los Ríos Province (1:694) * 2.

Guayas Province Guayas (, ) is a coastal Provinces of Ecuador, province in Ecuador. It is bordered to the west by Manabí Province, Manabí, Santa Elena Province, Ecuador, Santa Elena, and the Pacific Ocean (as the Gulf of Guayaquil); to the east by Los Ríos ...

(1:1,410) * 3. Galápagos Province (1:2,098) * 4. El Oro Province (1:3,237)

People

Notable people with this surname include: * Francesco Rizzo da Santacroce (1505-1545), Italian painter, active mainly in Bergamo and Venice * Adam Rizzo, American founder of the Solar Liberty * Alanna Rizzo, American sports reporter * Alberto Rizzo, fashion photographer and painter * Alberto Rizzo (footballer) (born 1993), Italian football player * Aldo Rizzo (1935-2021), Italian politician and magistrate * Alessandro Minuto-Rizzo (born 1940), Italian diplomat, former Deputy Secretary General of NATO * Alex Rizzo (1968-2002), American professional wrestler * Alfredo Rizzo (1902-1991), French-born Italian actor, screenwriter and director * Alfredo Rizzo (athlete) (1933–2023), former Italian middle-distance runner * Angelo Rizzo (1926-2008), Italian Roman Catholic Bishop of Ragusa * Anthony Rizzo, MLB baseball player * Antonio Rizzo (footballer), Italian footballer * Armond Rizzo (born 1990), American gay pornographic film actor * Carmen Rizzo (born 1964), American producer, mixer, programmer, DJ, remixer and recording artist * Diletta Rizzo Marin, Italian operatic mezzo-soprano * Francesco Rizzo (footballer) (1943–2022), retired Italian football midfielder * Francisco Rizzo (1831-1910), acting Spanish Governor-General of the Philippines, * Frank Rizzo, former mayor of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, US * Frank Rizzo Jr. (born 1940), American politician * Frank L. Rizzo, Jr., politician and son of the aforementioned mayor * Giacomo Rizzo (born 1939), Italian film actor * Gianni Rizzo (1925-1992), Italian film actor * Giuseppe Rizzo (born 1991), Italian footballer * Giuseppe Rizzo (priest) (1863-1912), Italian priest, politician and journalist * Gonzalo Nicolás Rizzo Sánchez (born 1995), Uruguayan football defender * Helena Rizzo (born 1978), Brazilian chef and restaurateuse * Jessica Rizzo, pornographic actress and businesswoman * Jilly Rizzo (1917-1992), American restaurateur and associate of Frank Sinatra * Jo-Ann Rizzo (born 1965), Canadian curler * Joe Rizzo (American football) (born 1950),

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

linebacker from 1974 to 1980 * Joe Rizzo (baseball) (born 1998), American baseball player * John A. Rizzo (1947–2021), American lawyer and intelligence officer * John Rizzo (politician) (born 1980), American Democratic member of the Missouri Senate since 2017 * John-Ross Rizzo, American physician-scientist * Johnny Costa Rizzo (1912-1977), American outfielder in Major League Baseball * Joseph Rizzo an 18th-century philosopher and theologian from Malta * Juan Pablo Vojvoda Rizzo (born 1975), Argentine football manager * Juan Salvador Rizzo (1906, date of death unknown), Argentine football player * Linda Jo Rizzo (born 1955), American singer, composer and musical producer * Luca Rizzo (born 1992), Italian professional footballer * Luigi Rizzo, Italian naval officer and World War I hero * Marc Rizzo, current lead guitarist of Brazilian Metal band Soulfly and formerly of Ill Niño * Marco Rizzo, Italian politician * Matteo Rizzo (born 1998), Italian figure skater * Mauro Rizzo (born 1984), Italian footballer *

Michele Rizzo Michele Rizzo (born 16 September 1982) is a retired Italy, Italian former rugby union player. His preferred position was Rugby union positions#1. Loosehead prop & 3. Tighthead prop, prop but he can also play as a Rugby union positions#2. Hooker, ...

(born 1982), Italian rugby union player * Mike Rizzo, DJ and music producer * Mike Rizzo (baseball), baseball executive * Rita Rizzo, an American Franciscan nun known as Mother Angelica, founder of the Eternal Word Television Network * Nick Rizzo, Australian footballer * Nick Rizzo (curler) (born 1961), Canadian curler * Pat Rizzo, saxophonist for Sly & the Family Stone * Patti Rizzo (born 1960), American professional golfer * Paul Rizzo (born 1982), Australian Michael Jackson tribute artist * Pedro Rizzo, Brazilian mixed martial artist and kickboxer * Rob Rizzo, NASCAR driver * Robert Hunecke-Rizzo (born 1971), German bass player, guitarist and drummer * Roberto Rizzo (born 1961), former Italian football midfielder and current manager * Simone Rizzo DeCavalcante (1912-1997), Italian member of the New Jersey Mafia, nicknamed "The Count" * Sócrates Rizzo, Mexican politician * Steve Rizzo, American motivational speaker, author, and former stand-up comedian * Tatiana Rizzo (born 1986), Argentine volleyball player * Todd Rizzo (born 1971), retired Major League Baseball pitcher * Tony Rizzo (born 1940), Canadian politician * TJ Rizzo (1915-1979), American dance instructor and founder of the University of Utah Children's Dance * Turu Rizzo (1894-1967), Maltese Olympic water polo player and world record swimmer * Walter Rizzo (born 1956) champion Australian bodybuilder * Willy Rizzo (1928-2013), Italian photographer and designer. ;Fictional characters * Betty Rizzo, character from the musical '' Grease'' and the popular film version played by

Stockard Channing Stockard Channing (born Susan Antonia Williams Stockard; February 13, 1944) is an American actress. List of awards and nominations received by Stockard Channing, Her accolades include three Emmy Awards, a Tony Award, and a nomination for an Acade ...

* Frank Rizzo, the acerbic and profane character portrayed by Johnny Brennan * Luther Rizzo, character from the television series ''M*A*S*H'' * Stan Rizzo, character from the AMC television series

Mad Men ''Mad Men'' is an American historical drama, period drama television series created by Matthew Weiner and produced by Lionsgate Television. It ran on cable network AMC (TV channel), AMC from July 19, 2007, to May 17, 2015, with seven seasons ...

* Enrico "Ratso" Rizzo, character from the film ''Midnight Cowboy'' * Deputy Frank Rizzo, character from Reno 911!.

Other uses

* Anthony Rizzo Family Foundation, a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in Parkland, Florida, in 2012 by Anthony Rizzo * City of Bell scandal, one of the protagonists in a case of misappropriation of public funds in Bell, CA, in the late 2000s *

People v. Rizzo ''People v. Rizzo'', Court of Appeals of New York, 246 N.Y. 334, 158 N.E. 888 (1927), is a criminal case that set precedent for what constitutes an attempt An attempt to commit a crime occurs if a criminal has an intent to commit a crime ...

, a criminal case that set precedent for what constitutes an attempt to commit a crime * Re Rizzo & Rizzo Shoes Ltd, a 1998 judgment from the Supreme Court of Canada regarding the priority of employees interests

References

{{surname, Rizzo Italian-language surnames Surnames of Italian origin

Geographical distribution

People

Other uses

See also

References