2000
#104,257
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 159
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Cornyn
A surname derived from a location or place name associated with corn.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 194 Americans carry the last name Cornyn. That puts it at #110,961 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,766,775 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cornyn 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
194
1 in 1,766,775
Census rank
#110,961
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
169
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 169 bearers of the surname Cornyn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 110961st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cornyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cornyn
The surname Cornyn is of Celtic origin, derived from the Irish Gaelic word "corann" which means a branch, tree, or descended from a particular family or clan. The name is most commonly found in Ireland, particularly in counties Cork and Kerry, where it has been present since the 12th century.
The earliest known record of the name Cornyn appears in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of medieval Irish history, which mentions a "Coran" in the year 1201. It's believed that this early spelling evolved into the modern form of Cornyn over the following centuries.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Cornyn family was prominent in the Irish province of Munster, where they held lands and estates. One notable member was Dermot Cornyn, a 17th-century landowner and member of the Irish Parliament.
In the 18th century, a branch of the Cornyn family settled in County Clare, where they became landowners and established themselves as a influential local family. A famous member from this time was Father Patrick Cornyn (1724-1795), a Catholic priest who played a significant role in the preservation of Irish language and culture during the Penal Laws.
As the name spread beyond Ireland, it also took on various spellings, such as Cornine, Cornine, and Cornyne. In the 19th century, a number of Cornyns emigrated to North America, escaping the Great Famine in Ireland. One notable figure from this period was Patrick Cornyn (1831-1915), an Irish-American priest and educator who founded several Catholic schools in California.
Other notable individuals with the surname Cornyn include John Cornyn (born 1952), a US Senator from Texas, and Sarah Cornyn (born 1977), an Australian actress and model. The name has also been found in various other parts of the world, likely due to immigration from Ireland and the British Isles.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cornyn
Among Census respondents with the surname Cornyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Cornyn 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 Cornyn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White72.2% · 122
- Asian and Pacific Islander14.2% · 24
- Two or more races6.5% · 11
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 6
- Black or African American3.0% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cornyn
Cornyn 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
#112,568
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 156
-3 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 8,311 places
2020
#110,961
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 169
+13 bearers (+8.3%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Up 1,607 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #104,257 | 159 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #112,568 | 156 | 0.05 | -3 bearers (-1.9%) | Down 8,311 places |
| 2020 | #110,961 | 169 | 0.06 | +13 bearers (+8.3%) | Up 1,607 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 Cornyn 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 | #112,568 | #110,961 | 1.4% |
| Count | 156 | 169 | 8.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.06 | 13.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cornyn bearers went from 156 to 169 (+8.3% change). The surname moved up 1,607 positions in the national ranking, going from #112,568 to #110,961.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Cornyn
FAQ
Cornyn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cornyn?
Name Census estimates that about 194 living Americans carry the surname Cornyn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,766,775 residents.
How common is Cornyn?
Cornyn ranks #110,961 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.06 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 169 people with the surname Cornyn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (194), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.06 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.06 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Cornyn.
Has Cornyn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cornyn went from 156 recorded bearers to 169. That is an increase of 13 (+8.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #112,568 to #110,961.
What does the Census say about the background of Cornyn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cornyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 72.2%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.2%) and Two or More Races (6.5%). 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 Cornyn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 72.2% (122 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cornyn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (72.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (14.2%), Two or More Races (6.5%). 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 Cornyn (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 Cornyn mean?
A surname derived from a location or place name associated with corn. 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 Cornyn (0.06 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 Cornyn?
See how many people are called Cornyn on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.