2000
#18,135
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,416
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.52
Rare Last name
Coscia
An Italian surname derived from the Italian word "coscia" meaning thigh or haunch.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,532 Americans carry the last name Coscia. That puts it at #20,150 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.45 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 223,730 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coscia 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
1.5K
1 in 223,730
Census rank
#20,150
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,336 bearers of the surname Coscia in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.45 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 20150th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coscia, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coscia
The surname Coscia is of Italian origin, derived from the Italian word "coscia," which means "thigh" or "leg." It is believed to have originated as a nickname for someone with particularly strong or muscular legs, or perhaps as a descriptive surname for someone who worked in a profession that involved a lot of leg work, such as a messenger or a runner.
The earliest recorded instances of the Coscia surname can be traced back to the 13th and 14th centuries in various regions of Italy, particularly in the northern and central parts of the country. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name include Girolamo Coscia, a notable scholar and philosopher from Bologna who lived in the 15th century, and Niccolò Coscia, a influential banker and financier from Florence in the 16th century.
The Coscia name has also been found in historical records and documents from other parts of Italy, such as the Doge's Palace archives in Venice, where a record from the 14th century mentions a merchant named Coscia.
In the 17th century, a branch of the Coscia family settled in the town of Cosenza, located in the southern region of Calabria. This may have contributed to the formation of the place name Cosenza, which bears a striking resemblance to the surname.
Among the notable figures who have borne the Coscia surname throughout history are:
1. Vincenzo Coscia (1615-1698), an Italian prelate who served as the Bishop of Terni and later as a Cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church.
2. Niccolò Coscia (1681-1755), an Italian diplomat and Cardinal who served as the Secretary of State under Pope Clement XII.
3. Giovanni Battista Coscia (1730-1803), an Italian painter and engraver who was known for his religious and mythological works.
4. Giuseppe Coscia (1837-1922), an Italian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Italian Parliament and was a prominent figure in the Risorgimento movement.
5. Carlo Coscia (1888-1972), an Italian lawyer and politician who served as the Mayor of Turin from 1951 to 1958.
While the Coscia surname has its roots in Italy, it has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration, with notable bearers of the name found in countries such as the United States, Canada, and Argentina.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coscia
Among Census respondents with the surname Coscia, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Coscia 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 Coscia surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 1,244
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 57
- Two or more races1.9% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 8
- Black or African American0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coscia
Coscia 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
#18,385
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,506
+90 bearers (+6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.51
Rank movement Down 250 places
2020
#20,150
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,336
-170 bearers (-11.3%)
Per 100,000 0.45
Rank movement Down 1,765 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #18,135 | 1,416 | 0.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #18,385 | 1,506 | 0.51 | +90 bearers (+6.4%) | Down 250 places |
| 2020 | #20,150 | 1,336 | 0.45 | -170 bearers (-11.3%) | Down 1,765 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 Coscia 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 | #18,385 | #20,150 | -9.6% |
| Count | 1,506 | 1,336 | -11.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.51 | 0.45 | -12.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coscia bearers went from 1,506 to 1,336 (-11.3% change). The surname moved down 1,765 positions in the national ranking, going from #18,385 to #20,150.
FAQ
Coscia surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coscia?
Name Census estimates that about 1,532 living Americans carry the surname Coscia. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 223,730 residents.
How common is Coscia?
Coscia ranks #20,150 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.45 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 1,336 people with the surname Coscia. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,532), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.45 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.45 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 Coscia.
Has Coscia become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coscia went from 1,506 recorded bearers to 1,336. That is a decrease of 170 (-11.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #18,385 to #20,150.
What does the Census say about the background of Coscia?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coscia, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Coscia in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (1,244 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coscia appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (4.3%), Two or More Races (1.9%). 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 Coscia (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 Coscia mean?
An Italian surname derived from the Italian word "coscia" meaning thigh or haunch. 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 Coscia (0.45 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 Coscia?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.