2000
#64
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 270,097
First available Census row
Per 100,000 100.12
Common Last name
Cooper
An occupational surname referring to a barrel maker or repairer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 311,282 Americans carry the last name Cooper. That puts it at #72 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 90.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,101 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cooper 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 Cooper with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
311K
1 in 1,101
Census rank
#72
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
90.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
271K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 271,453 bearers of the surname Cooper in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 90.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 72nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cooper, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (25.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cooper
The surname Cooper has its origins in England, where it first emerged in the 13th century. It is an occupational surname, derived from the Old English word "cupere," meaning someone who made casks, buckets, and other wooden vessels. Coopers were skilled craftsmen who constructed and repaired these containers, which were essential for storing and transporting goods like wine, ale, and other liquids.
The earliest known record of the surname Cooper dates back to 1275, when a Richard le Cupere was mentioned in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire. This is one of the earliest surviving public records in England, and its inclusion of the name suggests that the occupation of cooper was already well-established by that time.
In the 14th century, the surname Cooper appeared in various forms, such as le Cuper, Cowper, and Couper, reflecting the regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. One notable mention is in the Domesday Book of 1086, where a landowner named Walter le Cupere is listed as holding property in Oxfordshire.
Throughout the medieval period, coopers played a vital role in the production and trade of alcoholic beverages, particularly in areas with thriving breweries and vineyards. The demand for their skills ensured that the surname Cooper remained prevalent across England.
One of the earliest recorded Coopers was William Cooper, born around 1390 in Leicestershire. He is mentioned in historical records as a prominent cooper and landowner in the region.
Another notable figure was John Cooper, a cooper from London who lived in the late 15th century. He is renowned for his work on the construction of the famous Nonsuch Palace, built by Henry VIII in Surrey between 1538 and 1545.
In the 16th century, the surname Cooper gained further prominence with the rise of the British Navy. Thomas Cooper, born around 1520 in Devon, was a master cooper who supplied the Royal Navy with high-quality casks and barrels for storing provisions and gunpowder on ships.
During the 17th century, the surname Cooper continued to be associated with skilled craftsmen, such as Richard Cooper, a cooper from Nottinghamshire, who is recorded as having supplied casks to the East India Company in the 1680s.
As the Cooper trade spread across the British Empire, the surname became widespread in various colonies, including North America and Australia. One notable figure was James Cooper, born in 1753 in Pennsylvania, who established a successful cooperage business and played a significant role in the American Revolutionary War as a supply contractor for the Continental Army.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cooper
Among Census respondents with the surname Cooper, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (25.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Cooper 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 Cooper surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.2% · 177,090
- Black or African American25.4% · 68,875
- Two or more races4.6% · 12,463
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 9,396
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 1,941
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 1,688
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cooper
Cooper 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
#70
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 280,791
+10,694 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 95.19
Rank movement Down 6 places
2020
#72
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 271,453
-9,338 bearers (-3.3%)
Per 100,000 90.82
Rank movement Down 2 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #64 | 270,097 | 100.12 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #70 | 280,791 | 95.19 | +10,694 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 6 places |
| 2020 | #72 | 271,453 | 90.82 | -9,338 bearers (-3.3%) | Down 2 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 Cooper 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 | #70 | #72 | -2.9% |
| Count | 280,791 | 271,453 | -3.3% |
| Per 100K | 95.19 | 90.82 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cooper bearers went from 280,791 to 271,453 (-3.3% change). The surname moved down 2 positions in the national ranking, going from #70 to #72.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Cooper
FAQ
Cooper surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cooper?
Name Census estimates that about 311,282 living Americans carry the surname Cooper. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,101 residents.
How common is Cooper?
Cooper ranks #72 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 90.82 per 100,000 residents, which is about 91 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 271,453 people with the surname Cooper. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (311,282), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 90.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 90.82 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 91 of them to have the surname Cooper.
Has Cooper become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cooper went from 280,791 recorded bearers to 271,453. That is a decrease of 9,338 (-3.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #70 to #72.
What does the Census say about the background of Cooper?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cooper, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.2%. The next largest groups are Black (25.4%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Cooper in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.2% (177,090 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cooper appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.2%), Black (25.4%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Cooper (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 Cooper mean?
An occupational surname referring to a barrel maker or repairer. 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 Cooper (90.82 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 Cooper?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.