cocke

Cocke is a surname of English origin and a placename in the United States. The surname appears in English and American records from the early modern period and is one of several spellings linked to the element “cock,” a nickname-based or diminutive personal name.

Notable people with the surname include John Cocke (1925–2002), an American computer scientist whose work on compilers and computer architecture helped lay the groundwork for modern optimization and RISC design; and William Cocke (18th–early 19th century), an American frontiersman and early Tennessee politician who participated in the governance of the region.

Cocke County, Tennessee, a county in the eastern part of the state, is named for William Cocke. The county is part of the broader historical and geographic footprint associated with the Cocke name in the United States, where it appears in various localities and institutions.