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Koch Family History

Koch Surname Meaning

German and Jewish (Ashkenazic): occupational name from Middle High German koch German Koch ‘cook’. The name in this sense is also established in some other European countries e.g. in France (Alsace and Lorraine) and Denmark.

Czech and Slovak: from Koch a pet form of Kochan or of any other personal name beginning with Ko-.

Polish: nickname from kochać ‘to love’ (see Kochan).

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


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Where is the Koch family from?

You can see how Koch families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Koch family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Koch families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 120 Koch families living in Pennsylvania. This was about 73% of all the recorded Koch's in USA. Pennsylvania had the highest population of Koch families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Koch surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
  • 1840
  • 1880
  • 1920
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What did your Koch ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Farmer and Stenographer were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Koch. 12% of Koch men worked as a Farmer and 8% of Koch women worked as a Stenographer. Some less common occupations for Americans named Koch were Clerk and Housekeeper.

View Census Data for Koch | 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
    12%
  • Laborer
    10%
  • Salesman
    6%
  • Clerk
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Stenographer
    8%
  • Housewife
    6%
  • Clerk
    6%
  • Housekeeper
    6%

What Koch family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 228,000 census records available for the last name Koch. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Koch census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

Search US census records for Koch

Passenger Lists

There are 86,000 immigration records available for the last name Koch. 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.

View all Koch immigration records

Draft Cards

There are 97,000 military records available for the last name Koch. For the veterans among your Koch ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

View all Koch military records

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