2000
#9,754
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,058
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.13
Rare Last name
Corliss
Derived from a French place name meaning "ravine, small valley" or from the Old French word "corlis" meaning "court attendant."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,163 Americans carry the last name Corliss. That puts it at #11,016 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,364 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Corliss 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
3.2K
1 in 108,364
Census rank
#11,016
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,758 bearers of the surname Corliss in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11016th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Corliss, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Corliss
The surname CORLISS is of English origin, derived from the Old French word 'corlieu', meaning a small courtyard or enclosed place. It is believed to have emerged in the 12th or 13th century, during the Norman conquest of England.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in various medieval records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from the late 12th century, where it appears as 'Corleus'. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 also mention a William Corleys from Oxfordshire.
In the 14th century, the surname appears in various forms, including Corles, Corlys, and Corlyes, indicating regional variations in spelling and pronunciation. One notable example is John Corlys, a landowner from Berkshire, who is mentioned in the Feet of Fines records from 1379.
The CORLISS surname is also associated with several place names in England, such as Corliss Hall in Lincolnshire and Corliss Farm in Dorset. These place names likely originated from individuals bearing the surname who owned or resided in those locations.
Notable individuals with the CORLISS surname throughout history include:
1. George Henry Corliss (1817-1888), an American inventor best known for developing the Corliss steam engine, which greatly improved efficiency and revolutionized industrial power generation.
2. William Wilson Corliss (1835-1924), an American clergyman and author, who served as a Chaplain in the Union Army during the American Civil War.
3. John Corliss (1808-1888), an American politician and businessman, who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly and was involved in the early development of the city of Milwaukee.
4. Edward Corliss (1862-1934), an American actor and playwright, known for his work on the vaudeville circuit and his collaborations with renowned playwright David Belasco.
5. Mary Corliss (1896-1985), an American artist and illustrator, renowned for her work in children's literature and her collaborations with notable authors like Lois Lenski and Robert Lawson.
The CORLISS surname has been present in various regions of England, particularly in counties like Lincolnshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire, where it has a long and well-documented history dating back to the Middle Ages.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Corliss
Among Census respondents with the surname Corliss, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Corliss 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 Corliss surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.9% · 2,507
- Two or more races4.2% · 116
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 80
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 38
- Black or African American0.5% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Corliss
Corliss 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
#10,136
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,181
+123 bearers (+4.0%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Down 382 places
2020
#11,016
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,758
-423 bearers (-13.3%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 880 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,754 | 3,058 | 1.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,136 | 3,181 | 1.08 | +123 bearers (+4.0%) | Down 382 places |
| 2020 | #11,016 | 2,758 | 0.92 | -423 bearers (-13.3%) | Down 880 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 Corliss 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 | #10,136 | #11,016 | -8.7% |
| Count | 3,181 | 2,758 | -13.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 0.92 | -14.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Corliss bearers went from 3,181 to 2,758 (-13.3% change). The surname moved down 880 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,136 to #11,016.
FAQ
Corliss surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Corliss?
Name Census estimates that about 3,163 living Americans carry the surname Corliss. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,364 residents.
How common is Corliss?
Corliss ranks #11,016 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,758 people with the surname Corliss. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,163), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Corliss.
Has Corliss become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Corliss went from 3,181 recorded bearers to 2,758. That is a decrease of 423 (-13.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,136 to #11,016.
What does the Census say about the background of Corliss?
Among Census respondents with the surname Corliss, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Corliss in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.9% (2,507 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Corliss appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.9%), Two or More Races (4.2%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Corliss (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 Corliss mean?
Derived from a French place name meaning "ravine, small valley" or from the Old French word "corlis" meaning "court attendant." 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 Corliss (0.92 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 are called Corliss?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Corliss at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.