2000
#7,548
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,063
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.51
Rare Last name
Cottingham
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Cottingham in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,586 Americans carry the last name Cottingham. That puts it at #7,948 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.34 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 74,739 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cottingham 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Cottingham with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.6K
1 in 74,739
Census rank
#7,948
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,999 bearers of the surname Cottingham in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.34 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7948th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottingham, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cottingham
The surname Cottingham is of English origin, originating from the village of Cottingham in the East Riding of Yorkshire. The name is derived from the Old English words "cot" meaning a small dwelling or cottage, and "ham" meaning a homestead or village. The earliest recorded spelling of the place name was found in the Domesday Book of 1086 as "Cotingaham".
In the 13th century, records show the name spelled as "Cotyngham". Over time, the spelling evolved to its current form, Cottingham. The name first appeared as a surname in the late 12th century, referring to someone who hailed from the village of Cottingham.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Robert de Cottingham, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1198. Another early record is that of William de Cottingham, who was listed in the Assize Rolls of Yorkshire in 1286.
During the medieval period, the Cottingham family held lands and properties in the East Riding of Yorkshire. In the 16th century, George Cottingham (1520-1591) was a notable English Protestant reformer and theologian.
Sir John Cottingham (1549-1628) was a prominent English lawyer and politician who served as Lord Chief Justice of the Common Pleas from 1623 to 1628. He played a significant role in the judicial proceedings against Sir Walter Raleigh.
Another noteworthy figure was John Cottingham (1615-1701), an English philosopher and mathematician who made contributions to the field of optics and was a member of the Royal Society.
In the 19th century, James Cottingham (1819-1891) was a renowned English architect and designer, known for his work on Regency and Gothic Revival buildings. One of his most famous works is the Fitzwilliam Museum in Cambridge, completed in 1848.
Lastly, the British philosopher and author, John Cottingham (born 1943), is a prominent figure in modern times. He is a former Emeritus Professor of Philosophy at the University of Reading and has written extensively on the philosophy of religion and ethics.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cottingham
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottingham, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Cottingham 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 Cottingham surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.3% · 2,812
- Black or African American20.5% · 821
- Two or more races4.9% · 197
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 126
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cottingham
Cottingham 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
#7,868
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,206
+143 bearers (+3.5%)
Per 100,000 1.43
Rank movement Down 320 places
2020
#7,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,999
-207 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.34
Rank movement Down 80 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,548 | 4,063 | 1.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,868 | 4,206 | 1.43 | +143 bearers (+3.5%) | Down 320 places |
| 2020 | #7,948 | 3,999 | 1.34 | -207 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 80 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 Cottingham 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 | #7,868 | #7,948 | -1.0% |
| Count | 4,206 | 3,999 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.43 | 1.34 | -6.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cottingham bearers went from 4,206 to 3,999 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 80 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,868 to #7,948.
FAQ
Cottingham surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cottingham?
Name Census estimates that about 4,586 living Americans carry the surname Cottingham. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 74,739 residents.
How common is Cottingham?
Cottingham ranks #7,948 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.34 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 3,999 people with the surname Cottingham. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,586), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.34 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.34 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 Cottingham.
Has Cottingham become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cottingham went from 4,206 recorded bearers to 3,999. That is a decrease of 207 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,868 to #7,948.
What does the Census say about the background of Cottingham?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cottingham, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.3%. The next largest groups are Black (20.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Cottingham in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.3% (2,812 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cottingham appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.3%), Black (20.5%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Cottingham (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 Cottingham mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from any of the places named Cottingham in England. 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 Cottingham (1.34 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 Cottingham?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.