The Cornell surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 21,558 people carried this name — #1,672 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 13,700 people counted. That is up 2% from 21,060 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Cornell surname

From Cornwall, spelling conflated with the Latin family name Cornelius.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Cornell» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a local name, from where the family lived: ‘of Cornall’.

His entry covers Cornall, Corney and Cornell.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 204 · public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 92 people named Cornell live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 70
City of Buenos Aires 22

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In the Nordic population registers

76 people named Cornell is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 76

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

In the first U.S. census, 1790

110 families named Cornell, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 607 people lived in those households, 5.5 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 4 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

New York 40
Massachusetts 30
Rhode Island 22
Pennsylvania 12
Maryland 3
Maine 1
Connecticut 1
North Carolina 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 235 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Cornell in American newspapers,
1924–1928.

Newspaper page from The Ronan Pioneer carrying the name Cornell
The Ronan Pioneer 1928-06-21
Newspaper page from The Harlem News carrying the name Cornell
The Harlem News 1927-01-07
Newspaper page from The Ronan Pioneer carrying the name Cornell
The Ronan Pioneer 1924-04-11

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 8,868 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Cornell in Australian newspapers,
1830s–2000s.

35,452 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Cornell. The most, 7,172, date from the 1930s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Western Australia, at 3.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Western Australia 10,850
Victoria 8,253
New South Wales 7,580
Queensland 4,101
South Australia 3,842
Tasmania 603
ACT (Canberra) 150
Northern Territory 19

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Cornell.

Who carried it

People named Cornell,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Anne Cornell d. 1773
  • Thomas Cornell 1595–1655
  • Richard Cornell 1625–1693 · metallurgist
  • Jacob Cornell 1669–1758
  • Martha Cornell 1671–1748
  • Thomas Cornell, IV 1674–1728

Wikidata (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Cornell,
in the records of 8 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States3,691 records

3,691 records of the Cornell name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 1,578
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 772
  • Other U.S. records 1,341
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Steven Thomas Cornell

    Born 1948; from New York, New York. U.S. Marine Corps, rifleman; killed in action 1967 in Quang Tin, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Norman W. Cornell

    Born 1924 in New York. Enlisted 1943 at New York City; construction laborer from Nassau County. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1996, buried at Calverton National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Walter Cornell

    Arrived at New York in 1891 aboard the Teutonic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 23; miner. From Leeds, England; bound for Providence.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 3,691 records for Cornell in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · City of Asheville (public domain, PDDL) · Ramsey County, Minnesota (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Australia523 records

523 records of the Cornell name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 205
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 194
  • Other Australian records 124
  1. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Robert Cornell

    Died 1915 in General Hospital, Launceston, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1915.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Marie Cornell

    Arrived in Victoria in 1858 aboard the Queen of the Seas, aged 42; English.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record John Cornell

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Barossa, arriving 1839; ticket of leave 1846.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 523 records for Cornell in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · City of Ballarat, Avenue of Honour Plaques (CC BY 3.0 AU) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain).

Canada67 records

67 records of the Cornell name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 26
  • City of Niagara Falls (Ontario) cemetery records 14
  • Other Canadian records 27
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Donald William Cornell

    Buried in 1993 at Union Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 64.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Frederick Meade Cornell

    Buried in 1963 at Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, Nova Scotia, aged 69.

    Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax.
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Mary Cornell

    Died 1918 in Amherst, Cumberland, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 67 records for Cornell in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · Halifax Regional Municipality. Contains information licenced under the Open Government Licence—Halifax. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

United Kingdom14 records

14 records of the Cornell name in the United Kingdom War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record C. H. Cornell

    Royal Field Artillery. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  2. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record A. Cornell

    Coldstream Guards. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record F. Cornell

    Norfolk Regiment. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1917.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Showing 3 of 14 records for Cornell in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Germany10 records

10 records of the Cornell name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Otto Cornell

    From Bramstadt, Belgard. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 9 April 1915 (Fusilier Regiment No. 33).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Robert Cornell

    From Stangenwalde. Reported taken prisoner in the Prussian casualty list of 24 May 1919 (Infantry Regiment No. 129).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 2 of 10 records for Cornell in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Netherlands6 records

6 records of the Cornell name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 4
  • Dutch population registers 1
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 1
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Lydia Cornell

    Died 1948 in Zeist, aged 60.

    Open Archives, Het Utrechts Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Adriaan Cornell

    Married in 1699 in Hooge en Lage Zwaluwe.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Dingena Cornell

    Married in 1794 in Dinteloord.

    Open Archives, West Brabants Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 6 records for Cornell in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Cornell name in New Zealand Christchurch City cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Flora Harriett Cornell

    Died 1962, aged 85; buried at Ruru Lawn, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France1 record

1 record of the Cornell name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Carmen Maria Cornell

    Born 1909 in Clichy (Paris); died 1987 in Reims (Marne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Cornell.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Cornell is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See the Cornell volume
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