Find out how popular the last name Cabot is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Cabot.

Cabot, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Cabot surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cabot in America

Cabot is the 19041st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cabot surname appeared 1,430 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Cabot.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cabot to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Cabot

The surname Cabot is believed to have originated from the French Normandy region, deriving from the Old French word "cabot" meaning a small dog or a hound. It is thought to have first appeared as a surname in the 11th century.

The earliest recorded use of the name Cabot can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions a person named William Cabot who was a landowner in Essex, England. It is likely that this was a nickname that evolved into a hereditary surname.

In the 13th century, the name Cabot was recorded in various forms such as Cabott, Cabote, and Cabotus, indicating its Norman French origins. These variations were possibly influenced by the place name Cabotte, a small village in Normandy.

One of the most famous bearers of the surname Cabot was the Italian navigator and explorer Giovanni Caboto (c. 1450-1499), better known as John Cabot. He was the first European since the Vikings to explore the Atlantic coast of North America, laying the groundwork for future English claims to the region.

Another notable Cabot was Sebastian Cabot (c. 1474-1557), the son of John Cabot. He was an Italian explorer and cartographer who played a significant role in the exploration of North America and the search for the Northwest Passage.

In England, the Cabot family of Bristol, descended from John Cabot, produced several notable figures, including William Cabot (1699-1776), a prominent merchant and member of the British Parliament.

The surname Cabot also has a strong presence in France, particularly in the regions of Normandy and Brittany. One notable French Cabot was Pierre Cabot (1598-1668), a Catholic priest and historian who wrote extensively about the history of Normandy.

In the United States, the Cabot family of Massachusetts, descendants of John Cabot, produced several influential figures, including George Cabot (1751-1823), a prominent politician and one of the founders of the Federalist Party.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cabot

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Cabot.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Cabot was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Cabot has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Cabot was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Cabot, please contact us.

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