2000
#10,650
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,757
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.02
Rare Last name
Coffelt
A surname of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "koppelvelt," meaning a plot of land.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,002 Americans carry the last name Coffelt. That puts it at #11,499 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 114,175 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coffelt 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
3.0K
1 in 114,175
Census rank
#11,499
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,618 bearers of the surname Coffelt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11499th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coffelt
The surname COFFELT has its origins in medieval Germany, tracing back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German words "kofe" meaning a small barrel or cask, and "feld" meaning a field or open land. This suggests the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near fields where barrels or casks were produced or stored.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany, dated around 1200 AD. The entry mentions a landowner named Conradus Coffelt residing in the town of Zwickau.
By the 14th century, variations of the name such as Koffeldt, Coffelte, and Koffelt appeared in various records across German-speaking regions. A notable figure was Johann Koffelt, a merchant and alderman in the city of Nuremberg, who lived from 1385 to 1452.
As the name spread across Europe, it took on various spellings and adaptations. In England, the spelling COFFELT first appeared in the late 16th century, likely brought over by German immigrants or traders. One of the earliest known English bearers was Thomas Coffelt, a landowner in Oxfordshire, born in 1567.
The COFFELT name also found its way to the Netherlands, where it was sometimes spelled as Koffelt or Koffeltje. A prominent bearer was Willem Koffelt, a Dutch painter and engraver who lived from 1625 to 1681, known for his landscapes and portraiture.
In the early 17th century, the name made its way to the American colonies, with the arrival of German and Dutch settlers. One of the first recorded instances was Johannes Coffelt, who immigrated to Pennsylvania from Germany in 1654 and established a farm in what is now Berks County.
Another notable figure was Captain John Coffelt, an American Revolutionary War soldier who fought under General George Washington. He was born in Virginia in 1742 and served in several major battles, including the Battle of Monmouth in 1778.
As the centuries passed, the COFFELT surname continued to spread and evolve, with bearers making their mark in various fields, from politics and military to the arts and sciences. Despite its diverse geographical presence, the name remains rooted in its German origins, a testament to the rich tapestry of human migration and cultural exchange.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coffelt
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Coffelt 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 Coffelt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 2,383
- Two or more races3.9% · 102
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 89
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 23
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 15
- Black or African American0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coffelt
Coffelt 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
#10,797
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,953
+196 bearers (+7.1%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Down 147 places
2020
#11,499
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,618
-335 bearers (-11.3%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 702 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,650 | 2,757 | 1.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,797 | 2,953 | 1.00 | +196 bearers (+7.1%) | Down 147 places |
| 2020 | #11,499 | 2,618 | 0.88 | -335 bearers (-11.3%) | Down 702 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 Coffelt 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 | #10,797 | #11,499 | -6.5% |
| Count | 2,953 | 2,618 | -11.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.00 | 0.88 | -12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coffelt bearers went from 2,953 to 2,618 (-11.3% change). The surname moved down 702 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,797 to #11,499.
FAQ
Coffelt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coffelt?
Name Census estimates that about 3,002 living Americans carry the surname Coffelt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 114,175 residents.
How common is Coffelt?
Coffelt ranks #11,499 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.88 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 2,618 people with the surname Coffelt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,002), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.88 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 Coffelt.
Has Coffelt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coffelt went from 2,953 recorded bearers to 2,618. That is a decrease of 335 (-11.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,797 to #11,499.
What does the Census say about the background of Coffelt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffelt, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Coffelt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (2,383 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coffelt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Two or More Races (3.9%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Coffelt (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 Coffelt mean?
A surname of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "koppelvelt," meaning a plot of land. 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 Coffelt (0.88 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 Coffelt?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the surname Coffelt on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.