2000
#9,559
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.16
Rare Last name
Coan
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Comhdhain," meaning "descendant of Comhdhán" (a personal name of uncertain meaning).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,163 Americans carry the last name Coan. That puts it at #11,016 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,364 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coan 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 Coan with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.2K
1 in 108,364
Census rank
#11,016
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,758 bearers of the surname Coan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11016th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coan
The surname Coan has its origins in Ireland, traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Gaelic word "cuan," meaning "harbor" or "haven." This suggests that the name likely originated from a prominent location near a harbor or a coastal area in Ireland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Coan name can be found in the Irish Annals, which document historical events in Ireland. The Annals mention a family called "Ua Cuain" in the 12th century, which is thought to be an early form of the Coan surname.
During the medieval period, the name Coan was prevalent in the counties of Cork and Kerry, particularly in the areas around the towns of Clonakilty and Bantry. It is possible that the name was associated with these coastal regions due to their proximity to harbors and the significance of maritime activities.
The Coan surname also appears in various historical records, including the Fiants of the Tudor Sovereigns, which were administrative documents issued by the English monarchs during their reign over Ireland. These records mention individuals with the surname Coan, indicating their presence in Ireland during the 16th and 17th centuries.
One notable individual with the Coan surname was Sir Patrick Coan, a prominent lawyer and judge who lived in the late 16th century. He served as Chief Justice of the Irish Common Pleas and played a significant role in the legal system during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
Another historical figure was Thomas Coan, born in 1801 in County Cork, Ireland. He was a renowned mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics. Coan served as the Director of the Armagh Observatory in Northern Ireland from 1858 until his death in 1877.
In the 19th century, John Coan was a distinguished American missionary who spent over four decades in Hawaii, working to establish churches and schools on the islands. He was born in 1809 in Connecticut and arrived in Hawaii in 1835, where he dedicated his life to spreading Christianity and education.
The Coan surname also has connections to place names in Ireland. For example, there is a townland called Coanshingane in County Cork, which may have derived its name from the Coan family or vice versa.
Throughout history, the Coan surname has been spelled in various ways, including Cowan, Cowen, Cowane, and Coyn, reflecting regional variations and the evolution of language over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coan
Among Census respondents with the surname Coan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Coan 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 Coan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.5% · 2,442
- Two or more races3.0% · 84
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 78
- Black or African American2.5% · 70
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.2% · 60
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coan
Coan 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
#10,596
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,024
-96 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 1.03
Rank movement Down 1,037 places
2020
#11,016
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,758
-266 bearers (-8.8%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 420 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,559 | 3,120 | 1.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,596 | 3,024 | 1.03 | -96 bearers (-3.1%) | Down 1,037 places |
| 2020 | #11,016 | 2,758 | 0.92 | -266 bearers (-8.8%) | Down 420 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 Coan 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 | #10,596 | #11,016 | -4.0% |
| Count | 3,024 | 2,758 | -8.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.03 | 0.92 | -10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coan bearers went from 3,024 to 2,758 (-8.8% change). The surname moved down 420 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,596 to #11,016.
FAQ
Coan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coan?
Name Census estimates that about 3,163 living Americans carry the surname Coan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,364 residents.
How common is Coan?
Coan ranks #11,016 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,758 people with the surname Coan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,163), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Coan.
Has Coan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coan went from 3,024 recorded bearers to 2,758. That is a decrease of 266 (-8.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,596 to #11,016.
What does the Census say about the background of Coan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coan, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Coan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.5% (2,442 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.5%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Coan (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 Coan mean?
An Irish surname derived from the Gaelic "Ó Comhdhain," meaning "descendant of Comhdhán" (a personal name of uncertain meaning). 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 Coan (0.92 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 Coan?
See how many Americans have the surname Coan on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.