2000
#3,985
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,183
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.03
Rare Last name
Coffin
An occupational surname referring to a basket maker or someone who made or sold chests and boxes.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,956 Americans carry the last name Coffin. That puts it at #4,401 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.61 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 38,271 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coffin 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 Coffin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.0K
1 in 38,271
Census rank
#4,401
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,810 bearers of the surname Coffin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.61 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4401st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coffin
The surname Coffin originated in England, likely in the 12th or 13th century. It is derived from the Old French "cofin," meaning a basket or small case. This word is thought to have come from the Latin "cophinus," which had a similar meaning. The name may have referred to someone who made or sold baskets or cases.
The earliest known record of the name Coffin is in the Hundred Rolls of Huntingdonshire, England, from 1273, where a William Coffyn is mentioned. The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086, contains no mention of the name, suggesting it arose after the Norman Conquest.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various forms, such as Coffyn, Cophyn, and Coffyne. These variants likely reflect regional pronunciations and spellings. The modern spelling of Coffin became more standardized in the 16th and 17th centuries.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir Richard Coffin, who was born around 1350 in Somerset, England. He served as a Member of Parliament and was knighted for his military service in the Hundred Years' War.
Another notable figure was Tristram Coffin, born in 1609 in Brixton, England. He was one of the first settlers of Nantucket Island, Massachusetts, in 1659, and his descendants became prominent figures in the whaling industry.
In the 17th century, the name Coffin was associated with the village of Portledge, Devon, England, which was once known as Coffinswell or Coffin's Well, possibly referring to a former landowner or resident with the surname.
Sir Isaac Coffin, born in 1759 in Boston, Massachusetts, was a British naval officer who achieved the rank of admiral. He played a significant role in the War of 1812 against the United States.
Robert A. Coffin, born in 1892 in Brunswick, Maine, was an acclaimed American poet and writer. He won the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1936 for his book "Strange Holiness."
Throughout history, the surname Coffin has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including politicians, military leaders, settlers, writers, and more, spanning multiple countries and continents.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coffin
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Coffin 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 Coffin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.0% · 6,869
- Two or more races3.4% · 267
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 245
- Black or African American2.6% · 206
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 123
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 100
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coffin
Coffin 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
#4,274
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,312
+129 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 2.82
Rank movement Down 289 places
2020
#4,401
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,810
-502 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 2.61
Rank movement Down 127 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,985 | 8,183 | 3.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,274 | 8,312 | 2.82 | +129 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 289 places |
| 2020 | #4,401 | 7,810 | 2.61 | -502 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 127 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 Coffin 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 | #4,274 | #4,401 | -3.0% |
| Count | 8,312 | 7,810 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.82 | 2.61 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coffin bearers went from 8,312 to 7,810 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 127 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,274 to #4,401.
FAQ
Coffin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coffin?
Name Census estimates that about 8,956 living Americans carry the surname Coffin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 38,271 residents.
How common is Coffin?
Coffin ranks #4,401 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.61 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,810 people with the surname Coffin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,956), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.61 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.61 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Coffin.
Has Coffin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coffin went from 8,312 recorded bearers to 7,810. That is a decrease of 502 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,274 to #4,401.
What does the Census say about the background of Coffin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coffin, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Coffin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.0% (6,869 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coffin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.0%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Coffin (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 Coffin mean?
An occupational surname referring to a basket maker or someone who made or sold chests and boxes. 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 Coffin (2.61 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 are called Coffin?
Want to know how many Americans have the surname Coffin? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.