2000
#21,981
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Coltrane
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a coal mine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,258 Americans carry the last name Coltrane. That puts it at #23,835 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 272,460 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coltrane 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
1.3K
1 in 272,460
Census rank
#23,835
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,097 bearers of the surname Coltrane in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23835th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coltrane, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.6%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coltrane
The surname Coltrane is believed to have originated in Scotland, specifically in the Scottish Lowlands region. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "colt" and "tun," meaning a farm or settlement where horses were bred or kept.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Coltrane can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which documented Scottish landowners who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. This suggests that the Coltrane surname had already been established in Scotland by the late 13th century.
In the 15th century, the Coltrane family was known to have holdings in the counties of Lanarkshire and Ayrshire. Records from this period show various spellings of the name, including Coltrane, Coltran, and Coltraine.
A notable figure in the history of the Coltrane name was Sir Walter Coltrane, a Scottish nobleman who lived in the 16th century. He was a prominent landowner and served as a member of the Scottish Parliament.
Another significant bearer of the Coltrane surname was John Coltrane, the legendary American jazz saxophonist and composer (1926-1967). Although not of Scottish descent, his name originated from the same historical roots.
In the 17th century, the Coltrane family established themselves in Ireland, particularly in County Antrim. One notable member from this branch was Samuel Coltrane (1732-1808), an Irish Presbyterian minister and author.
Other notable individuals with the Coltrane surname include Alice Coltrane (1937-2007), an American jazz pianist and composer, and John William Coltrane (1890-1962), an American businessman and politician who served as the 34th governor of Kansas.
The Coltrane name has also been associated with various place names in Scotland, such as Coltranetown and Coltranehall, further highlighting its historical ties to the region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coltrane
Among Census respondents with the surname Coltrane, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.6%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Coltrane 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 Coltrane surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.6% · 774
- Black or African American20.4% · 224
- Two or more races4.8% · 53
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 28
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 13
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coltrane
Coltrane 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
#22,809
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,123
+23 bearers (+2.1%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 828 places
2020
#23,835
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,097
-26 bearers (-2.3%)
Per 100,000 0.37
Rank movement Down 1,026 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,981 | 1,100 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,809 | 1,123 | 0.38 | +23 bearers (+2.1%) | Down 828 places |
| 2020 | #23,835 | 1,097 | 0.37 | -26 bearers (-2.3%) | Down 1,026 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 Coltrane 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 | #22,809 | #23,835 | -4.5% |
| Count | 1,123 | 1,097 | -2.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.38 | 0.37 | -3.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coltrane bearers went from 1,123 to 1,097 (-2.3% change). The surname moved down 1,026 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,809 to #23,835.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Coltrane
FAQ
Coltrane surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coltrane?
Name Census estimates that about 1,258 living Americans carry the surname Coltrane. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 272,460 residents.
How common is Coltrane?
Coltrane ranks #23,835 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.37 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,097 people with the surname Coltrane. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,258), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.37 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Coltrane.
Has Coltrane become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coltrane went from 1,123 recorded bearers to 1,097. That is a decrease of 26 (-2.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,809 to #23,835.
What does the Census say about the background of Coltrane?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coltrane, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.6%. The next largest groups are Black (20.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Coltrane in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.6% (774 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coltrane appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.6%), Black (20.4%), Two or More Races (4.8%). 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 Coltrane (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 Coltrane mean?
A locational surname referring to someone who lived near a coal mine. 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 Coltrane (0.37 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 Coltrane?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.