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Cox Family History

Cox Surname Meaning

English: variant of Cocke and Cook with genitival or post-medieval excrescent -s. Irish (Ulster): mistranslation of Mac Con Coille (‘son of Cú Choille’ a personal name meaning ‘hound of the wood’) as if formed with coileach ‘cock rooster’. Dutch and Flemish: genitivized patronymic from the personal name Cock a vernacular short form of Cornelius . Dutch: variant of Kok an occupational name for a cook. Amerindian (Mexico and Guatemala): Mayan name from a Castilianized form of a term denoting a species of pheasant-like bird.

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Fox, Box, Coy, Mox, Cobb, Sax, Pol, Joy, Cam, Boe

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Where is the Cox family from?

You can see how Cox families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Cox family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Cox families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 340 Cox families living in Ohio. This was about 10% of all the recorded Cox's in USA. Ohio had the highest population of Cox families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Cox surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Cox ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Housewife were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Cox. 17% of Cox men worked as a Farmer and 7% of Cox women worked as a Housewife. Some less common occupations for Americans named Cox were Truck Driver and Maid. .

View Census Data for Cox | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Farmer
    17%
  • Laborer
    15%
  • Salesman
    4%
  • Truck Driver
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Housewife
    7%
  • Housekeeper
    6%
  • Teacher
    6%
  • Maid
    5%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Cox family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 2 million census records available for the last name Cox. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Cox census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Cox

Passenger Lists

There are 161,000 immigration records available for the last name Cox. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 291,000 military records available for the last name Cox. For the veterans among your Cox ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Cox lifespan?

Between 1940 and 2004, in the United States, Cox life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1940, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Cox in 1940 was 35, and 74 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Cox

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