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

Couch, 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 Couch surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Couch in America

Couch is the 1323rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Couch surname appeared 26,615 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 9 people would have the surname Couch.

We can also compare 2010 data for Couch 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 Couch

The surname Couch originated in France and has its roots in the Old French word "couche," which means "bed" or "to lie down." The name likely referred to someone who made or sold beds or mattresses, or perhaps someone who lived near an inn or hostel where travelers could rest.

The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 12th century in Normandy, France. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Raoul Couch, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire, England, in 1190.

In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms such as "Couche," "Couch," and "Cuche" in official records and documents across Normandy and other parts of northern France. The Hundred Rolls of 1273 in England recorded a Robert Couche from Oxfordshire, indicating that the name had spread across the English Channel by that time.

The Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landowners and property in England compiled in 1086, does not contain any mention of the surname Couch, suggesting that the name arrived in England after the Norman Conquest.

Over the centuries, the name Couch has been associated with several notable individuals. One of the earliest was Sir Neville Couch (1545-1610), an English soldier and courtier who served under Queen Elizabeth I. Another was Thomas Couch (1592-1672), an English clergyman and author who wrote several religious works.

In more recent history, notable bearers of the surname include Sir Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch (1863-1944), a British writer and literary critic, and Darius Nash Couch (1822-1897), an American soldier who served as a Union Army corps commander during the American Civil War.

Other historical figures with the surname Couch include Jonathan Couch (1789-1870), an English naturalist and author, and John Couch Adams (1819-1892), an English mathematician and astronomer who is credited with predicting the existence of the planet Neptune.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Couch

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

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 Couch 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 Couch 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 Couch was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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