2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Choppin
A surname likely derived from the French word "chopper" meaning to chop or strike.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Choppin. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Choppin 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 Choppin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Choppin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Choppin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Choppin
The surname Choppin has its origins in France, dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "choppe," which referred to a type of drinking vessel or cup. The name may have been given to someone who made or sold these vessels, or perhaps someone who was known for their fondness for drinking from such cups.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Choppin can be found in the census records of the city of Rouen in Normandy, France, dating back to the year 1292. The record lists a "Jehan Choppin" as a resident of the city.
In the 14th century, the name Choppin appeared in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Saint-Père de Chartres, a medieval manuscript containing records of the Saint-Père Abbey in Chartres, France. This document mentions a "Guillaume Choppin" who was a landowner in the region.
During the Renaissance period, a notable figure with the surname Choppin was René Choppin (1537-1606), a French jurist and legal scholar. He served as a counselor in the Parlement of Paris and wrote several influential works on French law and jurisprudence.
In the 17th century, the Choppin name was associated with a famous family of printers and publishers in Paris. The most renowned member of this family was François Choppin (1604-1671), who established a successful printing business and published works by many prominent authors of the time.
Another notable individual with the surname Choppin was Jean-Baptiste Choppin (1662-1744), a French engraver and illustrator. He is best known for his intricate engravings of architectural designs and decorative patterns, which were widely admired during the Baroque period.
The Choppin surname has also been found in various places across France, with slight variations in spelling, such as Chopin or Chaupin. For instance, the village of Chaupin in the Auvergne region of central France may have been named after someone with this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Choppin
Among Census respondents with the surname Choppin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Choppin 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 Choppin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 105
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Two or more races2.6% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Choppin
Choppin 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+19 bearers (+17.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,131 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-16 bearers (-12.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 15,885 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+17.1%) | Up 8,131 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -16 bearers (-12.3%) | Down 15,885 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 Choppin 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 | #130,610 | #146,495 | -12.2% |
| Count | 130 | 114 | -12.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Choppin bearers went from 130 to 114 (-12.3% change). The surname moved down 15,885 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #146,495.
FAQ
Choppin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Choppin?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Choppin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Choppin?
Choppin ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 114 people with the surname Choppin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Choppin.
Has Choppin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Choppin went from 130 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 16 (-12.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Choppin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Choppin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Choppin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Choppin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (2.6%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Choppin (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 Choppin mean?
A surname likely derived from the French word "chopper" meaning to chop or strike. 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 Choppin (0.04 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 last name Choppin?
Find out how many people are called Choppin on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.