2000
#18,153
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,414
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.52
Rare Last name
Canup
An Americanized form of the German surname Knaup meaning "little hill".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,423 Americans carry the last name Canup. That puts it at #21,459 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.42 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 240,867 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Canup 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
1.4K
1 in 240,867
Census rank
#21,459
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,241 bearers of the surname Canup in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.42 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 21459th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Canup, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Canup
The surname Canup has its origins in England, dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English words "canu" and "hop," which collectively meant "valley of the cane." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a valley where cane plants grew abundantly.
The earliest recorded instances of the Canup surname can be traced back to the counties of Essex and Suffolk in eastern England. Some of the earliest known bearers of this name include John Canup, born in 1592 in Colchester, Essex, and Thomas Canup, born in 1601 in Ipswich, Suffolk.
In the 17th century, records show that the Canup family had spread to various parts of England, including Cambridgeshire, Gloucestershire, and Wiltshire. One notable figure from this period was Sir William Canup (1624-1691), a successful merchant and landowner from Bristol, who played a significant role in the city's economic development.
As the British Empire expanded, some Canup families migrated to other parts of the world, including North America and Australia. In the United States, one of the earliest recorded Canups was John Canup, who settled in Virginia in the mid-18th century.
Throughout history, the Canup surname has been associated with several notable individuals. These include:
1. Thomas Canup (1782-1864), an English entrepreneur and philanthropist who founded the Canup Charitable Trust in London.
2. Elizabeth Canup (1805-1887), an American author and educator who established several schools for underprivileged children in New York City.
3. Sir Charles Canup (1839-1912), a British military officer who served in the Indian Rebellion of 1857 and later became the Governor of Gibraltar.
4. Robert Canup (1901-1979), an American scientist and inventor who held numerous patents in the field of electronics and telecommunications.
5. Margaret Canup (1927-2018), a renowned Australian artist and sculptor, known for her abstract and minimalist works.
While the Canup surname may have evolved over time, with variations in spelling and pronunciation, its origins can be traced back to the valleys of eastern England, where it first emerged as a marker of a specific geographic location.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Canup
Among Census respondents with the surname Canup, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Canup 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 Canup surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 1,109
- Two or more races5.5% · 68
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 4
- Black or African American0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Canup
Canup 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
#19,348
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,398
-16 bearers (-1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.47
Rank movement Down 1,195 places
2020
#21,459
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,241
-157 bearers (-11.2%)
Per 100,000 0.42
Rank movement Down 2,111 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,153 | 1,414 | 0.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #19,348 | 1,398 | 0.47 | -16 bearers (-1.1%) | Down 1,195 places |
| 2020 | #21,459 | 1,241 | 0.42 | -157 bearers (-11.2%) | Down 2,111 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 Canup 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 | #19,348 | #21,459 | -10.9% |
| Count | 1,398 | 1,241 | -11.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.47 | 0.42 | -11.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Canup bearers went from 1,398 to 1,241 (-11.2% change). The surname moved down 2,111 positions in the national ranking, going from #19,348 to #21,459.
FAQ
Canup surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Canup?
Name Census estimates that about 1,423 living Americans carry the surname Canup. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 240,867 residents.
How common is Canup?
Canup ranks #21,459 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.42 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 1,241 people with the surname Canup. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,423), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.42 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.42 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 Canup.
Has Canup become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Canup went from 1,398 recorded bearers to 1,241. That is a decrease of 157 (-11.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #19,348 to #21,459.
What does the Census say about the background of Canup?
Among Census respondents with the surname Canup, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.5%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Canup in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (1,109 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Canup appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Two or More Races (5.5%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Canup (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 Canup mean?
An Americanized form of the German surname Knaup meaning "little hill". 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 Canup (0.42 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 have the last name Canup?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Canup, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.