Show ContentsCoffman History, Family Crest & Coats of Arms

Etymology of Coffman

What does the name Coffman mean?

The Jewish surname Coffman is a patronymic surname, which belongs to the category of hereditary surnames. Kaufman means "merchant" or "shopkeeper" in German, and as a German name was generally an occupational name. However, for most of the Jewish people of this name, Coffman was derived from the first name Jacob (Yaakov), converted to a surname it became Yakovman, then Yakofman, which was shortened to Kofman. Kaufman, finally, would have been a spelling variation of this last version.

Coffman Spelling Variations

Spelling variations of this family name include: Kaufman, Kaufmann, Kauffmann, Kauffman and many more.

Coffman Ranking

the United States, the name Coffman is the 1,191st most popular surname with an estimated 24,870 people with that name. 1


Coffman migration to the United States +



Coffman Settlers in United States in the 19th Century
  • Mathias Coffman, who arrived in New York, NY in 1841 2
  • M Coffman, who landed in San Francisco, California in 1851 2

Contemporary Notables of the name Coffman (post 1700) +

  • Vance D. Coffman (b. 1944), American Chairman of the Board and Chief Executive Officer of Lockheed Martin Corporation
  • Jennifer B. Coffman (b. 1948), United States federal judge
  • Edward M. Coffman (b. 1929), American military historian, University of Wisconsin-Madison Professor Emeritus
  • DeWitt Coffman (1854-1932), United States Navy admiral
  • Charles G. Coffman, Republican President of the West Virginia Senate
  • Barbara Elaine Gunter Coffman, American writer of both historical romance and suspense
  • Lotus Delta Coffman, fifth president of the University of Minnesota
  • D. J. Coffman (b. 1976), American cartoonist
  • Paul Randolph Coffman (b. 1956), former professional American football player
  • ... (Another 23 notables are available in all our PDF Extended History products and printed products wherever possible.)

USS Arizona
  • Mr. Marshall Herman Coffman, American Gunner's Mate Third Class from Indiana, USA working aboard the ship "USS Arizona" when she sunk during the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor on 7th December 1941, he died in the sinking 3


Suggested Readings for the name Coffman +

  • Genealogy of Joseph and Rebecca Miller Coffman, and Early References about Kauffmanns by Ruth Perdiue.

  1. "What are the 5,000 Most Common Last Names in the U.S.?". NameCensus.com, https://namecensus.com/last-names/
  2. Filby, P. William, Meyer, Mary K., Passenger and immigration lists index : a guide to published arrival records of about 500,000 passengers who came to the United States and Canada in the seventeenth, eighteenth, and nineteenth centuries. 1982-1985 Cumulated Supplements in Four Volumes Detroit, Mich. : Gale Research Co., 1985, Print (ISBN 0-8103-1795-8)
  3. Pearl Harbour: USS Arizona Casualties List Pearl Harbour December 7, 1941. (Retrieved 2018, July 31st). Retrieved from http://pearl-harbor.com/arizona/casualtylist.html


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