2000
#6,900
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,487
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.66
Rare Last name
Coney
A surname derived from Old English, referring to a seller or keeper of rabbits or rabbit furs.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,260 Americans carry the last name Coney. That puts it at #7,053 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 65,162 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coney 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 Coney with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.3K
1 in 65,162
Census rank
#7,053
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,587 bearers of the surname Coney in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7053rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coney, the largest self-reported group is Black at 65.9%. The next largest groups are White (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coney
The surname Coney is of English origin, deriving from the Old English word "coney" or "conig," which referred to a rabbit or small animal resembling a rabbit. This name likely emerged as an occupational surname, possibly given to someone who raised or traded rabbits or other small furry animals.
The name can be traced back to the late 12th century, with records showing its use in various parts of England, particularly in the southern and eastern regions. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is found in the Pipe Rolls of Worcestershire from 1195, where a person named William Coney is mentioned.
Coney is also believed to have originated as a topographic surname, referring to someone who lived near a place where rabbits were abundant or in a location with a name derived from the Old English word "coney." For example, the village of Coningsby in Lincolnshire is thought to be named after the abundance of rabbits in the area.
In the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a record from the reign of King Edward I, there is a mention of a Hugo Cony in Oxfordshire. This early documentation suggests that the name had already become established in various regions of England by the 13th century.
Among notable figures with the surname Coney, John Coney (1786-1833) was an English clergyman and author who wrote extensively on the history and antiquities of the county of Norfolk. Another noteworthy individual was Thomas Coney (c. 1675-1751), an English printer and publisher who established a successful printing business in London.
Other historically significant individuals with the surname include Sir William Coney (1632-1695), an English lawyer and politician who served as a Member of Parliament, and William Coney (1796-1868), an English ornithologist and naturalist known for his contributions to the study of bird life in Norfolk.
The surname Coney has also been found in various spellings throughout history, such as Cony, Conney, and Conye, reflecting the evolution of language and regional variations in pronunciation and spelling.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coney
Among Census respondents with the surname Coney, the largest self-reported group is Black at 65.9%. The next largest groups are White (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Coney 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 Coney surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American65.9% · 3,025
- White25.6% · 1,173
- Two or more races4.7% · 216
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 129
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 24
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 20
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coney
Coney 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
#6,711
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,032
+545 bearers (+12.1%)
Per 100,000 1.71
Rank movement Up 189 places
2020
#7,053
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,587
-445 bearers (-8.8%)
Per 100,000 1.53
Rank movement Down 342 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,900 | 4,487 | 1.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,711 | 5,032 | 1.71 | +545 bearers (+12.1%) | Up 189 places |
| 2020 | #7,053 | 4,587 | 1.53 | -445 bearers (-8.8%) | Down 342 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 Coney 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 | #6,711 | #7,053 | -5.1% |
| Count | 5,032 | 4,587 | -8.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.71 | 1.53 | -10.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coney bearers went from 5,032 to 4,587 (-8.8% change). The surname moved down 342 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,711 to #7,053.
FAQ
Coney surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coney?
Name Census estimates that about 5,260 living Americans carry the surname Coney. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 65,162 residents.
How common is Coney?
Coney ranks #7,053 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.53 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,587 people with the surname Coney. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,260), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.53 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.53 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Coney.
Has Coney become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coney went from 5,032 recorded bearers to 4,587. That is a decrease of 445 (-8.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,711 to #7,053.
What does the Census say about the background of Coney?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coney, the largest self-reported group is Black at 65.9%. The next largest groups are White (25.6%) and Two or More Races (4.7%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Coney in the 2020 Census, accounting for 65.9% (3,025 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coney appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (65.9%), White (25.6%), Two or More Races (4.7%). 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 Coney (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 Coney mean?
A surname derived from Old English, referring to a seller or keeper of rabbits or rabbit furs. 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 Coney (1.53 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 Coney?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.