Cohen

Cohen is a surname of Hebrew origin, derived from kohen, meaning "priest." It is traditionally associated with the kohanim, the ancient priestly caste of Israel. In English, the name is commonly spelled Cohen, with variants including Cohn, Coen, Kohn, and Kohen.

Cohen is common among Jewish communities worldwide and has spread across countries, especially in Israel and the United States. While the name historically signified priestly status, most contemporary Cohens no longer bear ritual responsibilities linked to the priesthood.

Notable individuals with the surname Cohen include Leonard Cohen, the Canadian singer-songwriter and poet; Sacha Baron Cohen, the British–Israeli actor and comedian; and Michael Cohen, an American attorney and former adviser. Other Cohen families have made contributions across arts, sciences, and public life.

In science and technology, the surname appears in several eponymous concepts. Cohen's d is a widely used measure of effect size in statistics, introduced by Jacob Cohen. Cohen's kappa is a statistic for inter-rater agreement also associated with Jacob Cohen. The Cohen–Sutherland algorithm, used for line clipping in computer graphics, is named after Daniel Cohen and Ivan Sutherland.