2000
#11,928
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,404
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.89
Rare Last name
Corea
Derived from a place name referring to Korea, or from the Greek word for "maiden."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,745 Americans carry the last name Corea. That puts it at #9,521 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 91,523 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Corea 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
3.7K
1 in 91,523
Census rank
#9,521
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,266 bearers of the surname Corea in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9521st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Corea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.3%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Black (1.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Corea
The surname COREA originated from the Italian word Corea, which is the Italian name for the Korean peninsula. The name likely first arose in Italy during the late Middle Ages or Renaissance period, when European explorers and traders began venturing to East Asia.
One of the earliest known references to the surname COREA can be found in the Archivio di Stato di Firenze (State Archives of Florence), which contains records dating back to the 15th century. These records mention individuals with the surname COREA living in Florence during this time period.
In the 16th century, a notable individual named Matteo COREA was born in Genoa, Italy, around 1530. He was a Jesuit missionary who traveled to Japan and Korea, and wrote extensively about his experiences in these countries.
Another early bearer of the COREA surname was Giovanni Battista COREA, an Italian painter who lived from 1554 to 1621. He was born in Milan and is best known for his religious paintings and frescoes.
During the 17th century, the COREA surname appeared in various records across Italy, including the Archivio di Stato di Venezia (State Archives of Venice) and the Archivio di Stato di Napoli (State Archives of Naples).
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the COREA surname was Pietro COREA, an Italian architect born in Naples in 1726. He designed several churches and palaces in Naples and the surrounding region.
Moving into the 19th century, Giuseppe COREA was an Italian poet and writer born in Palermo, Sicily, in 1820. He wrote several collections of poetry and plays, and was known for his lyrical style.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the surname COREA, which originated in Italy and likely derived from the Italian word for Korea, reflecting the connections between Europe and East Asia during the Age of Exploration and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Corea
Among Census respondents with the surname Corea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.3%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Black (1.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Corea 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 Corea surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino81.3% · 2,654
- White15.9% · 520
- Black or African American1.2% · 40
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 32
- Two or more races0.5% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Corea
Corea 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
#10,159
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,176
+772 bearers (+32.1%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Up 1,769 places
2020
#9,521
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,266
+90 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 638 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,928 | 2,404 | 0.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,159 | 3,176 | 1.08 | +772 bearers (+32.1%) | Up 1,769 places |
| 2020 | #9,521 | 3,266 | 1.09 | +90 bearers (+2.8%) | Up 638 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 Corea 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 | #10,159 | #9,521 | 6.3% |
| Count | 3,176 | 3,266 | 2.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 1.09 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Corea bearers went from 3,176 to 3,266 (+2.8% change). The surname moved up 638 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,159 to #9,521.
FAQ
Corea surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Corea?
Name Census estimates that about 3,745 living Americans carry the surname Corea. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 91,523 residents.
How common is Corea?
Corea ranks #9,521 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.09 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 3,266 people with the surname Corea. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,745), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.09 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 Corea.
Has Corea become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Corea went from 3,176 recorded bearers to 3,266. That is an increase of 90 (+2.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,159 to #9,521.
What does the Census say about the background of Corea?
Among Census respondents with the surname Corea, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 81.3%. The next largest groups are White (15.9%) and Black (1.2%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Corea in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.3% (2,654 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Corea appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (81.3%), White (15.9%), Black (1.2%). 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 Corea (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 Corea mean?
Derived from a place name referring to Korea, or from the Greek word for "maiden." 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 Corea (1.09 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 Corea?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.