2000
#2,454
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,514
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.01
Uncommon Last name
Coburn
An English occupational surname for someone who burned charcoal or lived near a place where it was produced.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 14,960 Americans carry the last name Coburn. That puts it at #2,698 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.36 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 22,911 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coburn 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Coburn with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
15K
1 in 22,911
Census rank
#2,698
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
4.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
13K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 13,046 bearers of the surname Coburn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.36 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2698th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coburn, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coburn
The surname COBURN originated in England and Scotland during the medieval period. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "cob" meaning a headland or promontory, and "burn" meaning a stream or brook. Thus, the name likely referred to someone who lived near a stream at the base of a headland or hillside.
COBURN is a locational surname, meaning it originated from a place name. Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various historical documents from the 12th and 13th centuries, such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire and the Chartulary of Kelso Abbey in Scotland.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the name was William de Coburn, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1166. Another early reference is to Thomas de Coburne, who was recorded in the Chartulary of Kelso Abbey in 1292.
The name COBURN has also been associated with various place names throughout England and Scotland, such as Cobburn in Northumberland, Coburn in Yorkshire, and Coburn Muir in Lanarkshire, Scotland. These place names likely contributed to the widespread adoption of the surname in those regions.
Notable individuals throughout history who bore the surname COBURN include:
1. John Coburn (c. 1648-1719), an English-born settler in New Jersey who served as a member of the Provincial Assembly.
2. Abraham Coburn (1768-1848), an American manufacturer and philanthropist who founded the Coburn School in Massachusetts.
3. Charles D. Coburn (1877-1961), an American actor who won an Academy Award for Best Supporting Actor in 1943 for his role in "The More the Merrier."
4. William Coburn (1804-1887), a Scottish-born artist and engraver who worked in the United States and is known for his landscapes and portraits.
5. John Wesley Coburn (1829-1908), an American politician and lawyer who served as a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives from Indiana.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals who carried the surname COBURN throughout history, highlighting its wide geographic distribution and various occupations and achievements associated with the name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coburn
Among Census respondents with the surname Coburn, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Coburn 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 Coburn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White82.3% · 10,739
- Black or African American9.3% · 1,217
- Two or more races4.0% · 527
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 411
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 103
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 49
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coburn
Coburn 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
#2,625
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,741
+227 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 4.66
Rank movement Down 171 places
2020
#2,698
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 13,046
-695 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 4.36
Rank movement Down 73 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,454 | 13,514 | 5.01 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,625 | 13,741 | 4.66 | +227 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 171 places |
| 2020 | #2,698 | 13,046 | 4.36 | -695 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 73 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 Coburn 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 | #2,625 | #2,698 | -2.8% |
| Count | 13,741 | 13,046 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 4.66 | 4.36 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coburn bearers went from 13,741 to 13,046 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 73 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,625 to #2,698.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Coburn
FAQ
Coburn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coburn?
Name Census estimates that about 14,960 living Americans carry the surname Coburn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 22,911 residents.
How common is Coburn?
Coburn ranks #2,698 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.36 per 100,000 residents, which is about 4 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 13,046 people with the surname Coburn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (14,960), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.36 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.36 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 4 of them to have the surname Coburn.
Has Coburn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coburn went from 13,741 recorded bearers to 13,046. That is a decrease of 695 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,625 to #2,698.
What does the Census say about the background of Coburn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coburn, the largest self-reported group is White at 82.3%. The next largest groups are Black (9.3%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Coburn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 82.3% (10,739 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coburn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (82.3%), Black (9.3%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Coburn (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 Coburn mean?
An English occupational surname for someone who burned charcoal or lived near a place where it was produced. 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 Coburn (4.36 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 are called Coburn?
If you just want to know how many people are called Coburn, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.