Find out how popular the last name Cornwall is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Cornwall.

Cornwall, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Cornwall surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Cornwall in America

Cornwall is the 12285th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Cornwall surname appeared 2,531 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Cornwall.

We can also compare 2010 data for Cornwall to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Cornwall

The surname Cornwall has its origins in the county of Cornwall in the South West of England. It is an English locational surname derived from the Old English words "corn" meaning grain and "walh" meaning foreigner or stranger, likely referring to the Britons who lived in that region before the Anglo-Saxon invasion and settlement.

The earliest recorded reference to the name Cornwall can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Cornualia" and "Cornugallia." This suggests that the name has been in use since at least the late 11th century.

In the 12th century, the name is recorded as "de Cornubia" and "de Cornualle" in various medieval records, reflecting the Norman French influence on English surnames at the time.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Richard de Cornwall, who was the Earl of Cornwall and the second son of King John of England. He was born in 1209 and died in 1272.

Another notable figure with the surname Cornwall was John Cornwall, a 14th-century English philosopher and theologian who was born around 1320 and died in 1389.

In the 15th century, the name is found in its modern spelling "Cornwall" in various records, such as those of William Cornwall, a member of Parliament for Somerset in 1449.

During the Tudor period, Sir John Cornwall was a notable figure who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1561.

In the 17th century, Sir William Cornwall was a prominent English merchant and Member of Parliament who lived from 1589 to 1677.

The surname Cornwall has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Cornwall Park in London and Cornwall Terrace in Bayswater, reflecting the historical connections between the name and the county.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Cornwall

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Cornwall.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Cornwall was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Cornwall has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Cornwall was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Cornwall, please contact us.

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