Explore the Family Name Cu

The meaning of Cu

1. Chinese: variant Romanization of the surnames 邱 and 丘, possibly based on their Hokkien, Teochew or Taiwanese pronunciation, see Qiu 1 and 2. 2. Vietnamese (Cù): from the Chinese surname 瞿, see Qu 2. 3. Vietnamese (Cự): possibly from the Chinese surname 巨, see Ju 3. 4. Amerindian (Guatemala and Mexico): Mayan name, variant of Ku.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Cu in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the popularity of the surname 'Cu' has seen a significant increase from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 37,200 but by 2010 it had jumped up the rankings to 30,420, marking an impressive 18.23% increase in its popularity. Furthermore, the count of individuals with this surname also grew from 564 in 2000 to 768 in 2010, which indicates a robust increase of 36.17%. The proportion per 100k also saw an uptick from 0.21 to 0.26 during the same period, a growth of 23.81%.

20002010Change
Rank#37,200#30,42018.23%
Count56476836.17%
Proportion per 100k0.210.2623.81%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Cu

With regard to ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of people with the surname 'Cu' identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, despite a slight decrease from 82.45% in 2000 to 79.82% in 2010. The percentage of individuals identifying with two or more races rose slightly, appearing for the first time in the 2010 census with a 1.3% representation. Whites increased their representation from 5.5% to 6.77%, while Hispanics experienced a notable rise from 7.8% to 10.68%. Interestingly, those identifying as Black and those identifying as American Indian and Alaskan Native both fell to zero in 2010, whereas in 2000, the percentages were 2.48% and 0% respectively.

20002010Change
Asian/Pacific Islander82.45%79.82%-3.19%
Hispanic7.8%10.68%36.92%
White5.5%6.77%23.09%
Two or More Races0%1.3%0%
Black2.48%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%