2000
#13,434
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,078
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.77
Rare Last name
Coulombe
A French topographic surname referring to someone living near a dove-cote or pigeon house.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,330 Americans carry the last name Coulombe. That puts it at #14,183 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Coulombe 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
2.3K
1 in 147,105
Census rank
#14,183
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,032 bearers of the surname Coulombe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14183rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Coulombe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Coulombe
The surname Coulombe originated in France, specifically in the region of Normandy, during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "coulombe," which means "dove" or "pigeon." The name likely originated as a nickname or descriptive name for someone who kept or resembled these birds.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a survey of land ownership in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The Domesday Book mentions a landowner named William Coulombe in the county of Somerset.
In the 13th century, a French knight named Jean Coulombe participated in the Crusades and is mentioned in historical records from that time. Another notable figure was Jacques Coulombe, a merchant from Rouen, France, who established trade routes with England in the 15th century.
During the 16th century, the name appeared in the town of Coulombiers, which is now part of the modern-day commune of Verneuil-sur-Avre in the department of Eure, Normandy. This place name likely contributed to the spelling variations of the surname, such as Coulombier and Coulombières.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Coulombe in North America was Jean-Baptiste Coulombe, a French settler who arrived in Quebec, Canada, in the late 17th century. His descendants went on to establish several prominent Coulombe families in the region.
In the 19th century, Émile Coulombe was a French painter known for his landscapes and portraits, born in 1821 and died in 1899. Another notable figure was Pierre-Édouard Coulombe, a Canadian politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Legislative Assembly of Quebec, born in 1825 and died in 1901.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Coulombe
Among Census respondents with the surname Coulombe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Coulombe 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 Coulombe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 1,868
- Two or more races4.0% · 81
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 68
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.1% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Coulombe
Coulombe 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
#14,090
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,134
+56 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.72
Rank movement Down 656 places
2020
#14,183
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,032
-102 bearers (-4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 93 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,434 | 2,078 | 0.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,090 | 2,134 | 0.72 | +56 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 656 places |
| 2020 | #14,183 | 2,032 | 0.68 | -102 bearers (-4.8%) | Down 93 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 Coulombe 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 | #14,090 | #14,183 | -0.7% |
| Count | 2,134 | 2,032 | -4.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.72 | 0.68 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Coulombe bearers went from 2,134 to 2,032 (-4.8% change). The surname moved down 93 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,090 to #14,183.
FAQ
Coulombe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Coulombe?
Name Census estimates that about 2,330 living Americans carry the surname Coulombe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,105 residents.
How common is Coulombe?
Coulombe ranks #14,183 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 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 2,032 people with the surname Coulombe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 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 Coulombe.
Has Coulombe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Coulombe went from 2,134 recorded bearers to 2,032. That is a decrease of 102 (-4.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,090 to #14,183.
What does the Census say about the background of Coulombe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Coulombe, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.0%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Coulombe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (1,868 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Coulombe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (4.0%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Coulombe (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 Coulombe mean?
A French topographic surname referring to someone living near a dove-cote or pigeon house. 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 Coulombe (0.68 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 share the surname Coulombe?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.