2010
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Curoe
A surname possibly derived from the Irish Gaelic "curaidh", meaning hero or champion.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Curoe. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Curoe 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Curoe in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Curoe, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Curoe
The surname CUROE is of Irish origin, with its roots traced back to the 16th century. It is believed to have originated in County Galway, a region in the west of Ireland. The name is derived from the Irish Gaelic word "curadh," which means "hero" or "champion."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name CUROE can be found in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history. In these annals, a family bearing the name CUROE is mentioned in connection with the 16th-century Gaelic nobility of Connacht.
In the 17th century, the CUROE surname was prominent among the landed gentry of County Galway. Notable figures from this period include Donal CUROE (1610-1675), a landowner and member of the Irish Parliament, and his son, Eamon CUROE (1638-1702), who served as a captain in the Jacobite armies during the Williamite War in Ireland.
As the centuries passed, the CUROE family spread across Ireland and beyond. One notable bearer of the name was Michael CUROE (1790-1872), a prominent Irish nationalist and member of the Young Ireland movement. He was exiled to Tasmania in the late 1840s for his involvement in the Irish Rebellion of 1848.
In the 19th century, the CUROE surname also found its way to the United States, as many Irish immigrants sought new opportunities abroad. One of the earliest recorded CUROE immigrants was Patrick CUROE (1815-1890), who settled in Boston, Massachusetts, and became a successful merchant.
Another notable figure was Bridget CUROE (1845-1920), a pioneering Irish-American educator who founded one of the first Catholic schools for girls in Chicago, Illinois.
Throughout history, the CUROE name has been associated with a strong sense of Irish identity and a commitment to various causes, from nationalism and politics to education and community building. While the spelling may have varied slightly over time, the name's enduring legacy can be traced back to its origins in the rugged landscapes of County Galway and the heroic connotations of its Gaelic roots.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Curoe
Among Census respondents with the surname Curoe, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Curoe 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 Curoe surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.9% · 112
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- Two or more races0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Curoe
Curoe 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
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+17 bearers (+16.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 16,201 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +17 bearers (+16.8%) | Up 16,201 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 Curoe 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 | #159,712 | #143,511 | 10.1% |
| Count | 101 | 118 | 16.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.04 | 31.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Curoe bearers went from 101 to 118 (+16.8% change). The surname moved up 16,201 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #143,511.
FAQ
Curoe surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Curoe?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Curoe. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Curoe?
Curoe ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Curoe. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Curoe.
Has Curoe become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Curoe went from 101 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 17 (+16.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Curoe?
Among Census respondents with the surname Curoe, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). 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 Curoe in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.9% (112 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Curoe appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.9%), Hispanic (2.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.7%). 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 Curoe (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 Curoe mean?
A surname possibly derived from the Irish Gaelic "curaidh", meaning hero or champion. 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 Curoe (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 have the surname Curoe?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.