2000
#565
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,771
First available Census row
Per 100,000 19.93
Uncommon Last name
Copeland
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "bought land" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 61,318 Americans carry the last name Copeland. That puts it at #619 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 17.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 5,590 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Copeland 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 Copeland with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
61K
1 in 5,590
Census rank
#619
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
17.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
53K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 53,472 bearers of the surname Copeland in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 17.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 619th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Copeland, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Copeland
The surname Copeland originated in England, specifically in the region of Cumbria, in the medieval period. It is a locational surname derived from the place name "Copeland," which comes from the Old English words "copp" meaning hill or summit, and "land" meaning land or territory. This suggests that the name refers to someone who lived on or near a hilltop.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname date back to the 12th century. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Richard de Copeland, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Cumberland in 1183. The Pipe Rolls were financial records maintained by the English Exchequer, providing valuable insights into the names and locations of people living during that time.
The name Copeland is also found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landholdings and wealth commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The entry mentions a place called "Coupeland" in the northern county of Cumberland, which is believed to be the origin of the surname.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the Copeland surname was John de Copeland, who served as a knight and fought in the Scottish Wars of Independence under Edward I. He was captured at the Battle of Bannockburn in 1314 and later held for ransom.
Another prominent individual was Sir Ralph Copeland (c. 1285-1326), an English military commander who served under Edward II and Edward III. He played a significant role in the Scottish Wars of Independence and was knighted for his bravery in battle.
Sir John Copeland (c. 1350-1417) was an English soldier and diplomat who served under Richard II and Henry IV. He was involved in various military campaigns, including the Battle of Shrewsbury in 1403, and served as a diplomat in negotiations with France and Scotland.
In the literary realm, Gabriel Copeland (c. 1500-1585) was an English poet and translator during the Elizabethan era. He is best known for his translations of works by Italian poets, including Petrarch and Ariosto.
The surname Copeland has also been associated with various place names, such as Copeland Island in Northern Ireland, Copeland Borough in Cumbria, England, and the town of Copeland in Oklahoma, United States, reflecting the widespread distribution of the name over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Copeland
Among Census respondents with the surname Copeland, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.4%) and Two or More Races (4.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Copeland 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 Copeland surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.3% · 33,857
- Black or African American27.4% · 14,644
- Two or more races4.8% · 2,544
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 1,744
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 374
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 309
Timeline
Historical Census data for Copeland
Copeland 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
#609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 55,850
+2,079 bearers (+3.9%)
Per 100,000 18.93
Rank movement Down 44 places
2020
#619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 53,472
-2,378 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 17.89
Rank movement Down 10 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #565 | 53,771 | 19.93 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #609 | 55,850 | 18.93 | +2,079 bearers (+3.9%) | Down 44 places |
| 2020 | #619 | 53,472 | 17.89 | -2,378 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 10 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 Copeland 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 | #609 | #619 | -1.6% |
| Count | 55,850 | 53,472 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 18.93 | 17.89 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Copeland bearers went from 55,850 to 53,472 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 10 positions in the national ranking, going from #609 to #619.
FAQ
Copeland surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Copeland?
Name Census estimates that about 61,318 living Americans carry the surname Copeland. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 5,590 residents.
How common is Copeland?
Copeland ranks #619 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 17.89 per 100,000 residents, which is about 18 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 53,472 people with the surname Copeland. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (61,318), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 17.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 17.89 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 18 of them to have the surname Copeland.
Has Copeland become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Copeland went from 55,850 recorded bearers to 53,472. That is a decrease of 2,378 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #609 to #619.
What does the Census say about the background of Copeland?
Among Census respondents with the surname Copeland, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.3%. The next largest groups are Black (27.4%) 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 Copeland in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.3% (33,857 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Copeland appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.3%), Black (27.4%), 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 Copeland (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 Copeland mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "bought land" in Old English. 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 Copeland (17.89 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 have the surname Copeland?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.