2000
#9,902
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,005
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.11
Rare Last name
Coll
A topographic surname derived from the Old English word "coll," meaning a rounded hill or peak.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,440 Americans carry the last name Coll. That puts it at #10,223 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.00 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 99,638 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coll 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 Coll with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.4K
1 in 99,638
Census rank
#10,223
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,000 bearers of the surname Coll in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.00 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10223rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coll, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (29.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coll
The surname COLL is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "col," meaning "charcoal" or "coal." It likely originated as an occupational name for someone who worked with charcoal or coal.
The name COLL was prominent in various regions of England, particularly in the counties of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Nottinghamshire. It has been recorded with various spellings, such as Cole, Coale, and Coles, throughout history.
One of the earliest references to the name COLL can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which recorded landholders and tenants in England after the Norman Conquest. The name appears as "Cole" in several entries.
Notable individuals with the surname COLL include:
1. John Coll (c. 1330-1404), an English MP for Derbyshire in the Parliament of 1397.
2. Thomas Coll (c. 1480-1542), an English clergyman who served as the Archdeacon of Lewes from 1519 until his death.
3. William Coll (1608-1681), an English Puritan minister and author of several religious works.
4. John Coll (1737-1807), a British naval officer who served in the American Revolutionary War and later became Governor of Guernsey.
5. John Coll (1808-1879), a Scottish architect and civil engineer known for his work on railway bridges and viaducts.
The name COLL has also been associated with various place names, such as Colley in Wiltshire and Collingham in Nottinghamshire, which may have influenced the development of the surname in those areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coll
Among Census respondents with the surname Coll, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (29.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Coll 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 Coll surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White65.3% · 1,959
- Hispanic or Latino29.8% · 895
- Two or more races2.4% · 71
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 41
- Black or African American0.9% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coll
Coll 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
#11,608
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,704
-301 bearers (-10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 1,706 places
2020
#10,223
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,000
+296 bearers (+10.9%)
Per 100,000 1.00
Rank movement Up 1,385 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,902 | 3,005 | 1.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,608 | 2,704 | 0.92 | -301 bearers (-10.0%) | Down 1,706 places |
| 2020 | #10,223 | 3,000 | 1.00 | +296 bearers (+10.9%) | Up 1,385 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 Coll 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 | #11,608 | #10,223 | 11.9% |
| Count | 2,704 | 3,000 | 10.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.92 | 1.00 | 9.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coll bearers went from 2,704 to 3,000 (+10.9% change). The surname moved up 1,385 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,608 to #10,223.
FAQ
Coll surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coll?
Name Census estimates that about 3,440 living Americans carry the surname Coll. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 99,638 residents.
How common is Coll?
Coll ranks #10,223 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.00 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 3,000 people with the surname Coll. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,440), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.00 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 Coll.
Has Coll become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coll went from 2,704 recorded bearers to 3,000. That is an increase of 296 (+10.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,608 to #10,223.
What does the Census say about the background of Coll?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coll, the largest self-reported group is White at 65.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (29.8%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Coll in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.3% (1,959 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coll appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (65.3%), Hispanic (29.8%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Coll (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 Coll mean?
A topographic surname derived from the Old English word "coll," meaning a rounded hill or peak. 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 Coll (1.00 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 share the surname Coll?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.