2000
#8,679
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,487
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.29
Rare Last name
Cauthen
Derived from a place name meaning "cold one," likely referring to a stream, in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,721 Americans carry the last name Cauthen. That puts it at #9,582 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 92,114 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cauthen 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
3.7K
1 in 92,114
Census rank
#9,582
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,245 bearers of the surname Cauthen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9582nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cauthen, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.9%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cauthen
The surname Cauthen is believed to have originated in France and is derived from the Old French word "chaudun," which means "warm valley." This name likely originated as a place name referring to a warm or sunny valley. The earliest recorded spelling of the name was "Chaldun" in the late 11th century.
The name Cauthen is thought to have first appeared in the Normandy region of northern France. It is believed to have been introduced to England following the Norman Conquest of 1066. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name was in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it was listed as "Caldun."
In the 13th century, a notable bearer of the name was Sir Robert Caldun, a knight who fought in the Crusades. He was born around 1220 and died in 1289. Another early recorded instance of the name was William Cauldun, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1275.
During the 16th century, the name Cauthen began to appear in its more modern spelling. One notable bearer was John Cauthen, a merchant and landowner from Gloucestershire, England, who lived from 1532 to 1612.
In the 17th century, the name Cauthen made its way to North America with the arrival of English settlers. One of the earliest recorded instances was William Cauthen, who was born in England in 1625 and settled in Virginia in the 1650s.
Another notable bearer of the name was Sir John Cauthen, a British military officer who served in the American Revolutionary War. He was born in 1735 and died in 1813.
In the 19th century, James Cauthen, born in 1823 and died in 1896, was a prominent Baptist minister and educator in South Carolina.
Throughout history, the surname Cauthen has been associated with various professions, including military service, trade, and religious leadership. While the name originated in France, it has been present in England and North America for several centuries, with bearers making significant contributions in various fields.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cauthen
Among Census respondents with the surname Cauthen, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.9%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Cauthen 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 Cauthen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White68.9% · 2,237
- Black or African American25.2% · 818
- Two or more races3.3% · 108
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 57
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cauthen
Cauthen 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
#8,956
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,655
+168 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 1.24
Rank movement Down 277 places
2020
#9,582
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,245
-410 bearers (-11.2%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Down 626 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,679 | 3,487 | 1.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,956 | 3,655 | 1.24 | +168 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 277 places |
| 2020 | #9,582 | 3,245 | 1.09 | -410 bearers (-11.2%) | Down 626 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 Cauthen 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 | #8,956 | #9,582 | -7.0% |
| Count | 3,655 | 3,245 | -11.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.24 | 1.09 | -12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cauthen bearers went from 3,655 to 3,245 (-11.2% change). The surname moved down 626 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,956 to #9,582.
FAQ
Cauthen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cauthen?
Name Census estimates that about 3,721 living Americans carry the surname Cauthen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 92,114 residents.
How common is Cauthen?
Cauthen ranks #9,582 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.09 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 3,245 people with the surname Cauthen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,721), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.09 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 Cauthen.
Has Cauthen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cauthen went from 3,655 recorded bearers to 3,245. That is a decrease of 410 (-11.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,956 to #9,582.
What does the Census say about the background of Cauthen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cauthen, the largest self-reported group is White at 68.9%. The next largest groups are Black (25.2%) and Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Cauthen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 68.9% (2,237 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cauthen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (68.9%), Black (25.2%), Two or More Races (3.3%). 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 Cauthen (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 Cauthen mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "cold one," likely referring to a stream, in Old English. 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 Cauthen (1.09 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 Cauthen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.