2000
#9,967
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,987
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.11
Rare Last name
Caffrey
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Catharnaigh," meaning "descendant of Catharnach," a personal name meaning "warlike."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,337 Americans carry the last name Caffrey. That puts it at #10,518 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 102,713 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Caffrey 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 Caffrey with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 102,713
Census rank
#10,518
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,910 bearers of the surname Caffrey in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10518th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Caffrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Caffrey
The surname Caffrey has its origins in the Anglicized form of the Irish Gaelic name Ó Cafraigh, which means "descendant of Caffraidh". The name Caffraidh is derived from the Old Irish word "cafter", meaning "wild goat" or "mountain goat".
This surname is believed to have originated in County Tipperary, Ireland, where the Ó Cafraigh clan was based. The earliest recorded mention of the name dates back to the 13th century, appearing in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history.
In the 16th century, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I, many Irish names were anglicized to conform to English spelling and pronunciation. This is when the spelling "Caffrey" emerged as a variation of the original Gaelic name Ó Cafraigh.
The Caffrey surname has been found in various historical records throughout Ireland, such as the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, which were legal documents issued by the English administration in Ireland during the 16th and 17th centuries.
One notable bearer of the Caffrey name was Seán Ó Cafraigh, a 17th-century Irish poet and historian from County Tipperary, who wrote extensively about the history and genealogy of his clan.
Another prominent figure was Reverend James Caffrey (1736-1810), an Irish Catholic priest and educator who founded several schools in County Louth, Ireland, during the Penal Laws era when Catholic education was heavily restricted.
In the 19th century, John Caffrey (1817-1906) was an Irish-born lawyer and politician who served as a member of the New Zealand Parliament, representing the Waikato electorate.
The Caffrey surname also has a notable connection to the American Civil War, with John Caffrey (1832-1904) serving as a Union Army officer and receiving the Medal of Honor for his actions at the Battle of Fredericksburg in 1862.
In more recent times, Sir Benjamin Caffrey (1892-1974) was a British architect and town planner who played a significant role in the reconstruction efforts in London after World War II.
These examples showcase the historical significance and widespread distribution of the Caffrey surname, which has been carried by individuals from various walks of life throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Caffrey
Among Census respondents with the surname Caffrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Caffrey 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 Caffrey surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.6% · 2,637
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 94
- Two or more races3.0% · 86
- Black or African American2.1% · 60
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Caffrey
Caffrey 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
#10,486
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,062
+75 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 519 places
2020
#10,518
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,910
-152 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 32 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,967 | 2,987 | 1.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,486 | 3,062 | 1.04 | +75 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 519 places |
| 2020 | #10,518 | 2,910 | 0.97 | -152 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 32 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 Caffrey 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 | #10,486 | #10,518 | -0.3% |
| Count | 3,062 | 2,910 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 0.97 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Caffrey bearers went from 3,062 to 2,910 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 32 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,486 to #10,518.
FAQ
Caffrey surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Caffrey?
Name Census estimates that about 3,337 living Americans carry the surname Caffrey. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 102,713 residents.
How common is Caffrey?
Caffrey ranks #10,518 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,910 people with the surname Caffrey. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,337), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Caffrey.
Has Caffrey become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Caffrey went from 3,062 recorded bearers to 2,910. That is a decrease of 152 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,486 to #10,518.
What does the Census say about the background of Caffrey?
Among Census respondents with the surname Caffrey, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Caffrey in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.6% (2,637 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Caffrey appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.6%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Caffrey (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 Caffrey mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Catharnaigh," meaning "descendant of Catharnach," a personal name meaning "warlike." 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 Caffrey (0.97 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 surname Caffrey?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.