2000
#18,461
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,381
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.51
Rare Last name
Cahn
A surname derived from the Hebrew word "kohen," meaning priest or minister.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,516 Americans carry the last name Cahn. That puts it at #20,326 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.44 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 226,091 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cahn 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
1.5K
1 in 226,091
Census rank
#20,326
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,322 bearers of the surname Cahn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.44 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20326th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cahn
The surname Cahn is of German origin, and it is believed to have originated in the region of Bavaria in southern Germany during the 13th or 14th century. The name is thought to be derived from the Hebrew given name "Chaim," which means "life" or "alive." It is possible that the name was adopted by Jewish families who emigrated from the Holy Land to Germany during the Middle Ages.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Cahn can be found in a German census record from the late 15th century, where a man named Hans Cahn was listed as a resident of the town of Augsburg. The name was also mentioned in a document from the 16th century, which referred to a certain Jakob Cahn, who was a merchant and landowner in the city of Nuremberg.
In the 17th century, the name Cahn appeared in several historical records related to the Jewish community in Frankfurt, Germany. For example, a man named Moses Cahn was listed as a prominent member of the local synagogue in the year 1642. Another notable individual with this surname was Isaac Cahn, who was born in Frankfurt in 1670 and became a renowned scholar and rabbi.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Cahn name began to spread beyond Germany as members of the family migrated to other parts of Europe and even to the Americas. One notable figure was Jacob Cahn (1792-1868), who was born in the town of Heidelberg and later became a successful businessman and philanthropist in the United States.
Another prominent individual with the surname Cahn was Julius Cahn (1847-1935), who was born in Breslau, Germany (now Wrocław, Poland) and later became a respected theater manager and impresario in New York City. He was responsible for introducing many notable productions to American audiences, including the plays of Anton Chekhov and Henrik Ibsen.
In the 20th century, the Cahn name was further spread by individuals such as Sammy Cahn (1913-1993), an American lyricist and songwriter who was born in New York City to Jewish immigrant parents from Germany. He is best known for his contributions to popular songs such as "Three Coins in the Fountain," "High Hopes," and "Call Me Irresponsible."
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cahn
Among Census respondents with the surname Cahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Cahn 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 Cahn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White87.2% · 1,153
- Black or African American5.3% · 70
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 41
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 35
- Two or more races1.4% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cahn
Cahn 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
#19,803
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,358
-23 bearers (-1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.46
Rank movement Down 1,342 places
2020
#20,326
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,322
-36 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.44
Rank movement Down 523 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,461 | 1,381 | 0.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,803 | 1,358 | 0.46 | -23 bearers (-1.7%) | Down 1,342 places |
| 2020 | #20,326 | 1,322 | 0.44 | -36 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 523 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 Cahn 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 | #19,803 | #20,326 | -2.6% |
| Count | 1,358 | 1,322 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.46 | 0.44 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cahn bearers went from 1,358 to 1,322 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 523 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,803 to #20,326.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Cahn
FAQ
Cahn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cahn?
Name Census estimates that about 1,516 living Americans carry the surname Cahn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 226,091 residents.
How common is Cahn?
Cahn ranks #20,326 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.44 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 1,322 people with the surname Cahn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,516), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.44 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.44 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 Cahn.
Has Cahn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cahn went from 1,358 recorded bearers to 1,322. That is a decrease of 36 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,803 to #20,326.
What does the Census say about the background of Cahn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cahn, the largest self-reported group is White at 87.2%. The next largest groups are Black (5.3%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Cahn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 87.2% (1,153 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cahn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (87.2%), Black (5.3%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Cahn (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 Cahn mean?
A surname derived from the Hebrew word "kohen," meaning priest or minister. 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 Cahn (0.44 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 Americans have the surname Cahn?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.