2000
#12,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,191
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.81
Rare Last name
Dahlquist
A Swedish ornamental surname combining the elements dahl, meaning "valley," and quist, meaning "twig" or "branch."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,330 Americans carry the last name Dahlquist. That puts it at #14,183 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,105 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dahlquist surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 147,105
Census rank
#14,183
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,032 bearers of the surname Dahlquist in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14183rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dahlquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dahlquist
The surname Dahlquist has its origins in Sweden. It is a locational surname derived from the Swedish words 'dahl' meaning 'valley' and 'qvist' meaning 'branch' or 'twig'. Thus, the name suggests someone who lived near a wooded valley or in a secluded glen.
The earliest known record of the name dates back to the late 16th century in the Swedish region of Dalarna. An entry in the parish records of Falun from 1594 mentions a man named Johan Dahlquist. Around this time, the Swedish language was undergoing standardization, leading to the adoption of more uniform spellings of surnames.
One of the earliest notable figures with this surname was Carl Dahlquist, a Swedish engineer and inventor born in 1839. He is credited with developing the first practical high-pressure hydraulic turbine, which revolutionized the industrial use of hydraulic power.
In the realm of literature, the Swedish author Selma Dahlquist (1867-1926) gained recognition for her novels and short stories depicting life in rural Sweden. Her work was celebrated for its vivid portrayal of the country's landscapes and traditions.
Another prominent individual was Gustaf Dahlquist (1925-2005), a Swedish mathematician and pioneer in the field of numerical analysis. His contributions to the development of efficient algorithms for solving differential equations were widely influential.
In the realm of sports, Sven Dahlquist (1907-1979) was a Swedish soccer player who represented the national team in the 1934 and 1938 FIFA World Cups. He played as a defender and was known for his tenacious tackling and leadership on the field.
The Dahlquist surname also found its way to North America, with immigrants from Sweden bringing the name to the United States and Canada in the 19th and early 20th centuries. One notable figure was John Eric Dahlquist (1886-1954), a Swedish-American architect who designed several notable buildings in Chicago, including the Uptown Theatre.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dahlquist
Among Census respondents with the surname Dahlquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Dahlquist bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Dahlquist surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 1,873
- Two or more races3.1% · 62
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 51
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 34
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dahlquist
Dahlquist appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#13,850
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,182
-9 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 972 places
2020
#14,183
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,032
-150 bearers (-6.9%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 333 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,878 | 2,191 | 0.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,850 | 2,182 | 0.74 | -9 bearers (-0.4%) | Down 972 places |
| 2020 | #14,183 | 2,032 | 0.68 | -150 bearers (-6.9%) | Down 333 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Dahlquist surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #13,850 | #14,183 | -2.4% |
| Count | 2,182 | 2,032 | -6.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.68 | -8.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dahlquist bearers went from 2,182 to 2,032 (-6.9% change). The surname moved down 333 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,850 to #14,183.
FAQ
Dahlquist surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dahlquist?
Name Census estimates that about 2,330 living Americans carry the surname Dahlquist. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,105 residents.
How common is Dahlquist?
Dahlquist ranks #14,183 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,032 people with the surname Dahlquist. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,330), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Dahlquist.
Has Dahlquist become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dahlquist went from 2,182 recorded bearers to 2,032. That is a decrease of 150 (-6.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,850 to #14,183.
What does the Census say about the background of Dahlquist?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dahlquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.1%) and Hispanic (2.5%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dahlquist in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (1,873 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dahlquist appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (3.1%), Hispanic (2.5%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Dahlquist (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Dahlquist mean?
A Swedish ornamental surname combining the elements dahl, meaning "valley," and quist, meaning "twig" or "branch." The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Dahlquist (0.68 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people are called Dahlquist?
See how many people have the last name Dahlquist on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.