2000
#3,329
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,859
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.65
Uncommon Last name
Cohn
A Jewish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the Hebrew word for "priest" or a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,521 Americans carry the last name Cohn. That puts it at #3,770 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 32,578 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cohn 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 Cohn with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 32,578
Census rank
#3,770
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.2K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,175 bearers of the surname Cohn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3770th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cohn, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Black (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cohn
The surname Cohn is a variant of the Hebrew name Cohen, which originated from the Biblical Hebrew word "Kohen" meaning "priest." The name traces its roots back to ancient Israel, where the Kohanim were members of the priestly class, descended from Aaron, the brother of Moses.
The name Cohn is believed to have originated in the Rhineland region of Germany during the Middle Ages, where many Jewish communities were established. It was a common practice for Jews to adopt surnames based on their professions, places of origin, or other distinguishing characteristics. In this case, the surname Cohn was likely adopted by families of the priestly lineage.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Cohn can be found in the 13th-century Memorbuch, a record of deceased members of the Jewish community in Nuremberg, Germany. This document mentions individuals with the name Cohn, indicating that the surname was already in use by that time.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Cohn. One of the earliest was Rabbi Yaakov ben Moshe Hakohen Cohn (1610-1668), a prominent Talmudic scholar and author from Krakow, Poland. Another notable figure was Ferdinand Cohn (1828-1898), a German botanist and microbiologist who made significant contributions to the study of bacteria and algae.
In the realm of literature, Harry Cohn (1891-1958) was an American film producer and the co-founder of Columbia Pictures. Meanwhile, Alfred Cohn (1892-1953) was a German-American novelist and screenwriter best known for his collaboration with Billy Wilder on the script for the classic film "Double Indemnity."
Other notable individuals with the surname Cohn include Haym Salomon Cohn (1740-1785), a Polish-born Jewish immigrant to America who played a crucial role in financing the American Revolutionary War, and Roy Cohn (1927-1986), an American attorney who gained notoriety for his work as a prosecutor during the McCarthy era and his later involvement in various high-profile legal cases.
While the surname Cohn originated in Germany, it has since spread to various parts of the world through Jewish migration and diaspora communities. Today, it is found in many countries, including the United States, Israel, and various European nations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cohn
Among Census respondents with the surname Cohn, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Black (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Cohn 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 Cohn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.0% · 7,887
- Hispanic or Latino5.0% · 458
- Black or African American4.9% · 446
- Two or more races2.8% · 256
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 121
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cohn
Cohn 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
#3,758
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,426
-433 bearers (-4.4%)
Per 100,000 3.20
Rank movement Down 429 places
2020
#3,770
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,175
-251 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 3.07
Rank movement Down 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,329 | 9,859 | 3.65 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,758 | 9,426 | 3.20 | -433 bearers (-4.4%) | Down 429 places |
| 2020 | #3,770 | 9,175 | 3.07 | -251 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 12 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 Cohn 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 | #3,758 | #3,770 | -0.3% |
| Count | 9,426 | 9,175 | -2.7% |
| Per 100K | 3.20 | 3.07 | -4.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cohn bearers went from 9,426 to 9,175 (-2.7% change). The surname moved down 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,758 to #3,770.
FAQ
Cohn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cohn?
Name Census estimates that about 10,521 living Americans carry the surname Cohn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 32,578 residents.
How common is Cohn?
Cohn ranks #3,770 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.07 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 9,175 people with the surname Cohn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,521), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.07 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 Cohn.
Has Cohn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cohn went from 9,426 recorded bearers to 9,175. That is a decrease of 251 (-2.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,758 to #3,770.
What does the Census say about the background of Cohn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cohn, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.0%) and Black (4.9%). 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 Cohn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.0% (7,887 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cohn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.0%), Hispanic (5.0%), Black (4.9%). 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 Cohn (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 Cohn mean?
A Jewish surname of uncertain origin, possibly derived from the Hebrew word for "priest" or a place name. 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 Cohn (3.07 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 Cohn?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.