The Koo surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,923 people carried this name — #6,843 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 59,900 people counted. That is up 27% from 3,870 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Koo surname

Romanization of Cantonese 顧／顾 (gu3).

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

In Argentina’s national register

At least 38 people named Koo 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 City of Buenos Aires.

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

Where they live today

City of Buenos Aires 38

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

In Switzerland’s population statistics

21 people named Koo live in Switzerland.

They live in 5 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Vaud.

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

Where they live today

Vaud 6
Geneva 5
Basel-Landschaft 4
Neuchâtel 3
Zurich 3

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In print

Koo in American newspapers,
1851–1923.

Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Koo
Daily Kennebec Journal 1923-10-30
Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Koo
Daily Kennebec Journal 1921-11-25
Newspaper page from The Daily Crescent carrying the name Koo
The Daily Crescent 1851-09-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 189,934 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Koo in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

4,202 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Koo. The most, 825, date from the 1920s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.8 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 1,546
New South Wales 955
Queensland 805
South Australia 363
Western Australia 281
Tasmania 165
ACT (Canberra) 50
Northern Territory 6

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

Who carried it

People named Koo,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Wellington Koo 1888–1985 · judge
  • Wellington Koo 1888–1985 · judge
  • Wellington Koo 1888–1985 · judge
  • Joseph Koo 1931–2023 · actor
  • Joseph Koo 1931–2023 · actor
  • Joseph Koo 1931–2023 · actor

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

In the public record

People named Koo,
in the records of 5 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 States136 records

136 records of the Koo name in the United States
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 103
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 9
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 7
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 7
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 7
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 2
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Young C. Koo

    Born 1931; from Hawaii. U.S. Army, light weapons infantry leader; died of wounds 1952 in North Korea. Buried at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.

    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 Ler Jack R. Koo

    Born 1916 in Ohio. Enlisted 1943 at Fort Hayes Columbus; machinist from Mushingum County.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain)
  3. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Herm Koo

    Arrived at New York in 1869 aboard the America from Bremen, aged 44; farmer. From Germany.

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

Showing 3 of 136 records for Koo in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (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).

Netherlands34 records

34 records of the Koo name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch population registers 20
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 9
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 5
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Jok Tik Koo

    Died 1965 in Rotterdam, aged 54.

    Open Archives, Stadsarchief Rotterdam (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Elisabeth Koo

    Married in 1695 in Groningen.

    Open Archives, Groninger Archieven (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Benjamin Koo

    Buried in 1681 in Delft.

    Open Archives, Archief Delft (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 34 records for Koo 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); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Canada15 records

15 records of the Koo name in Canada
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 9
  • Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver 3
  • City of Winnipeg cemetery records 2
  • City of Waterloo (Ontario) cemetery records 1
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Tong Siu Mui Koo

    Buried in 1995 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 83.

    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 Soo Gan Koo

    Died 1927; buried at Mountain View Cemetery, Vancouver, British Columbia.

    City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Paul Fat Koo

    Buried in 1983 at Parkview Cemetery, Waterloo, Ontario.

    Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence

Showing 3 of 15 records for Koo in Canada.

Counts: City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

Norway4 records

4 records of the Koo name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Marie Koø

    Census of 1910: Koø Mausund (plads), Nordfrøya; "husmandsdatter", born 1899 in Nordfrøya.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  2. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Anna Koø

    Census of 1910: Koø Mausund (plads), Nordfrøya; born 1863 in Nordfrøya.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)
  3. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Albin Koø

    Census of 1910: Koø Mausund (plads), Nordfrøya; born 1892 in Nordfrøya.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Showing 3 of 4 records for Koo in Norway.

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

France2 records

2 records of the Koo 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 Vilma Koo

    Born 1913 in Romania; died 1999 in Paris.

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Chui-Ying Koo

    Born 1929 in China; died 1994 in Neuilly-sur-Seine (Hauts-de-Seine).

    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 Koo.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Koo 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 Koo volume
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