2000
#11,287
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,570
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.95
Rare Last name
Dam
A Dutch toponymic surname referring to someone living near a dam or embankment.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,071 Americans carry the last name Dam. That puts it at #8,856 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 84,194 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dam 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Dam with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 84,194
Census rank
#8,856
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,550 bearers of the surname Dam in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8856th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dam, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 78.8%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dam
The surname "DAM" is believed to have originated in the Netherlands and Belgium during the medieval period. It is derived from the Dutch word "dam," which means a barrier or embankment constructed to hold back water. This name was likely given to someone who lived near a dam or was responsible for maintaining one.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name "DAM" can be found in the Dutch town of Gouda, where a certain Jan Dam is mentioned in a legal document dated 1367. The name was also present in other parts of the Low Countries, such as the city of Bruges, where a merchant named Willem Dam is recorded in a trade register from the 15th century.
In the Netherlands, the surname "DAM" has been associated with several notable individuals throughout history. One such person was Nicolaes Dam, a Dutch painter who lived from 1647 to 1687 and is known for his still-life paintings depicting household objects and flowers.
Another prominent figure with the surname "DAM" was Hendrik Dam, a Dutch politician and jurist who served as the Grand Pensionary of Holland from 1672 to 1677. He played a crucial role in negotiating the Treaty of Nijmegen, which ended the Franco-Dutch War.
In Belgium, the name "DAM" can be traced back to the 16th century, with records showing a family by that name living in the city of Ghent. One notable Belgian with this surname was Pieter Dam, a renowned painter and engraver who lived from 1642 to 1705 and is known for his etchings depicting landscapes and rural scenes.
The surname "DAM" also found its way to other parts of Europe, such as Germany, where it was sometimes spelled as "DAMM." In the 18th century, a German mathematician named Christian Dam made important contributions to the field of calculus and published several works on the subject.
Another individual of note was Willem Dam, a Dutch navigator and explorer who accompanied the famous explorer Abel Tasman on his voyages to Australia and New Zealand in the 1640s. Dam played a crucial role in mapping and documenting the newly discovered lands.
While the surname "DAM" has its roots in the Netherlands and Belgium, it has since spread to other parts of the world, including the United States, Canada, and Australia, where it continues to be used by descendants of Dutch and Belgian immigrants.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dam
Among Census respondents with the surname Dam, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 78.8%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Dam 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 Dam surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander78.8% · 2,798
- White15.3% · 544
- Two or more races2.6% · 94
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 72
- Black or African American1.1% · 38
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dam
Dam 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
#10,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,186
+616 bearers (+24.0%)
Per 100,000 1.08
Rank movement Up 1,173 places
2020
#8,856
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,550
+364 bearers (+11.4%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Up 1,258 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,287 | 2,570 | 0.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,114 | 3,186 | 1.08 | +616 bearers (+24.0%) | Up 1,173 places |
| 2020 | #8,856 | 3,550 | 1.19 | +364 bearers (+11.4%) | Up 1,258 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 Dam 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 | #10,114 | #8,856 | 12.4% |
| Count | 3,186 | 3,550 | 11.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.08 | 1.19 | 10.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dam bearers went from 3,186 to 3,550 (+11.4% change). The surname moved up 1,258 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,114 to #8,856.
FAQ
Dam surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dam?
Name Census estimates that about 4,071 living Americans carry the surname Dam. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 84,194 residents.
How common is Dam?
Dam ranks #8,856 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.19 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 3,550 people with the surname Dam. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,071), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.19 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 Dam.
Has Dam become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dam went from 3,186 recorded bearers to 3,550. That is an increase of 364 (+11.4%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,114 to #8,856.
What does the Census say about the background of Dam?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dam, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 78.8%. The next largest groups are White (15.3%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dam in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.8% (2,798 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dam appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (78.8%), White (15.3%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Dam (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 Dam mean?
A Dutch toponymic surname referring to someone living near a dam or embankment. 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 Dam (1.19 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 share the surname Dam?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.