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

Decoste, 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 Decoste surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Decoste in America

Decoste is the 25459th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Decoste surname appeared 971 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Decoste.

We can also compare 2010 data for Decoste 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 Decoste

The surname DECOSTE originated in France, specifically in the northern regions of the country. It is derived from the Old French words "de" meaning "from" and "coste" meaning "hill" or "slope." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who resided near or on a hill or sloping terrain.

In the early medieval period, the DECOSTE surname can be traced back to the historical records of the Normandy region of France, where variations such as "de Coste" and "de la Coste" were commonly found. These early spellings reflect the Norman-French influence in the area following the Norman Conquest of England in 1066.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the DECOSTE surname is found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire, England, dating back to 1273. This document lists a "William de la Coste" as a landowner in the area, indicating that the family had already established itself in England by this time.

Throughout the Middle Ages and into the Renaissance period, the DECOSTE name appeared in various historical records across France and England. Notable individuals bearing this surname include Jean de la Coste (c. 1510-1592), a French Protestant theologian and author, and Guillaume De Coste (1648-1726), a French Protestant minister and writer who fled to England during the religious persecution of the Huguenots.

In the 17th century, the DECOSTE surname also found its way to North America, with early settlers arriving in the French colonies of Acadia (present-day Maritime provinces of Canada) and Quebec. One of the earliest recorded instances is that of André Decoste, who was born in France around 1650 and later settled in Port-Royal, Acadia.

Another notable figure was Pierre Decoste (1721-1799), a French-Canadian farmer and militia officer who fought in the French and Indian War and the American Revolutionary War. In the United States, John De Coste (1794-1877) was a prominent lawyer and politician from Virginia who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives.

As the DECOSTE surname spread across various regions, it also experienced variations in spelling, including DeCoste, De Coste, and DeCoste. These changes often reflected regional dialects and linguistic influences, but the core meaning and origin of the name remained consistent.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Decoste

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

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

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

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