2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Cup
An English surname derived from an Old English word meaning a small drinking vessel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Cup. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Cup 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Cup in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Cup, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Cup
The surname Cup has its origins in the Old English word "cuppe", which referred to a drinking vessel or a small container made of wood, metal or clay. This name is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period, likely as an occupational surname for someone who made or sold cups.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Cup can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire from the year 1202, where a person named Robert le Cupper is mentioned. The "le" prefix indicates the individual's occupation, in this case, a cup maker or seller.
In the 13th century, the surname Cup appeared in various records, including the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, which mentions a Richard le Cupper. The Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327 also list a William le Cupper.
The surname Cup has been derived from various place names throughout England, such as Cupper's Green in Buckinghamshire, Cupper's Close in Gloucestershire, and Cupper's Hill in Hertfordshire. These place names likely originated from individuals with the surname Cup residing in those areas.
Notable individuals with the surname Cup include John Cup, a merchant and alderman of Bristol in the 15th century, who was born around 1420 and died in 1492. Another prominent figure was William Cup, a yeoman from Oxfordshire, who was born in 1567 and served as a member of the English parliament in 1601.
In the 17th century, Edward Cup, born in 1628, was a noted author and poet from London. His work, "A Collection of Poems and Plays", published in 1675, garnered significant acclaim during his lifetime.
During the 18th century, James Cup, born in 1712 in Warwickshire, was a renowned architect who designed several notable buildings, including St. Peter's Church in Nottingham, which was completed in 1778.
In the 19th century, Mary Cup, born in 1845 in Yorkshire, was a prominent women's rights activist and a leading figure in the suffrage movement. She campaigned tirelessly for women's right to vote and was instrumental in the eventual passage of the Representation of the People Act in 1918.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Cup
Among Census respondents with the surname Cup, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Cup 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 Cup surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 105
- Black or African American2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.6% · 3
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Cup
Cup appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+6 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,037 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.6%) | Up 5,037 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 Cup 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 | #151,532 | #146,495 | 3.3% |
| Count | 108 | 114 | 5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Cup bearers went from 108 to 114 (+5.6% change). The surname moved up 5,037 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #146,495.
FAQ
Cup surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Cup?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Cup. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Cup?
Cup ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Cup. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Cup.
Has Cup become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Cup went from 108 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 6 (+5.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Cup?
Among Census respondents with the surname Cup, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Black (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Cup in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (105 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Cup appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Black (2.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.6%). 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 Cup (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 Cup mean?
An English surname derived from an Old English word meaning a small drinking vessel. 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 Cup (0.04 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 Cup?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.