Cox
An English surname usually explained as a form of Cock or as a shortened version of Cook, with the final -s / -x reflecting older spelling habits.
The #78 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 1,182 Americans shares it.
Etymology
The surname Cox is usually treated as a nickname or shortened form related to Middle English cock, a familiar term that could be used as a personal nickname. Some 19th-century writers also connected it with Cook through the Latinized form cocus, which could yield spellings such as Cocks and Cox. In practice, the name may reflect more than one early source, because medieval surnames often developed separately in different places from the same-sounding nickname or occupational word.
History
Cox is long established in England and appears widely in later medieval and post-medieval records. It became a common hereditary surname and also produced related forms such as Cocks, Coxe, Coxen, and Coxon. The name is especially well represented in English-speaking countries today, including the United States.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
In older surname books, Cox was sometimes discussed alongside Cocks and even Cook, showing how flexible medieval spelling and pronunciation could be.
From the historical record
“in Yorkshire. COX. COXE. See Eng. Surn. under Cock, i. 165. Probably a sjaionym of Little. It may, however, be the same as Cook, from its latinized form, thus : Cocus, Cocks, Cox. COXELL. Either Coxall, co. Hereford, or Coxwell, co. Berks. COXON. Coxswain ? COY. ]M'Coy, sans I\Iac.”
— Patronymica Britannica: a dictionary of the family names of the United KingdomNotable people named Cox
- Courteney Cox (b. 1964)
- Laverne Cox (b. 1972)
- Brian Cox (b. 1946)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.