2000
#10,650
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,757
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.02
Rare Last name
Dasher
An occupational surname referring to someone who makes wood shingles or barrels.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,148 Americans carry the last name Dasher. That puts it at #11,054 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,880 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dasher 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
3.1K
1 in 108,880
Census rank
#11,054
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,745 bearers of the surname Dasher in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11054th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dasher, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.5%. The next largest groups are Black (21.2%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dasher
The surname "DASHER" is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be an occupational name derived from the Old English word "dæsc," which means "to strike or beat." This likely referred to someone who was a thresher, or one who separated grain from the husks by beating it.
One of the earliest known records of the name can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire from 1195, where a person named "Roger le Dascher" is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use by the late 12th century.
The name "DASHER" also appears in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire from 1203, where a "William le Dascher" is recorded. These early records indicate that the name was initially used as a descriptive surname, referring to someone's occupation as a thresher.
In the 13th century, the name is found in various forms, such as "Dasscher," "Daschere," and "Dassher," reflecting the variations in spelling and pronunciation that were common during that time. These variations likely arose as the name spread to different regions of England.
One notable person bearing the surname "DASHER" was John Dasher, who was born in Oxfordshire in 1560. He was a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Oxford, and his name can be found in several records from the late 16th and early 17th centuries.
Another individual worth mentioning is Elizabeth Dasher (1638-1705), who was born in Gloucestershire. She was a renowned herbalist and midwife in her local community, and her name is recorded in various parish records from the late 17th century.
In the 18th century, the surname "DASHER" is found in several records from the county of Yorkshire. One notable example is William Dasher (1720-1798), who was a successful farmer and landowner in the village of Ripley.
The name "DASHER" also appears in historical records from other parts of England, such as the county of Dorset, where a family by the name of Dasher resided in the village of Shaftesbury during the 17th and 18th centuries.
One of the earliest known instances of the name "DASHER" appearing in literature is in the play "The Merry Wives of Windsor" by William Shakespeare, which was written around 1597. In the play, a character named "Dasher" is mentioned briefly, though it is unclear whether this was intended as a surname or a descriptive term.
Overall, the surname "DASHER" has a rich history in England, dating back to the medieval period, and it is likely derived from the occupation of a thresher or someone who beat grain to separate it from the husks. While the name has undergone various spelling variations over the centuries, it has persisted as a distinct surname with notable bearers throughout English history.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dasher
Among Census respondents with the surname Dasher, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.5%. The next largest groups are Black (21.2%) and Two or More Races (3.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Dasher 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 Dasher surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.5% · 1,935
- Black or African American21.2% · 583
- Two or more races3.8% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 92
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 26
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dasher
Dasher 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
#10,050
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,205
+448 bearers (+16.2%)
Per 100,000 1.09
Rank movement Up 600 places
2020
#11,054
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,745
-460 bearers (-14.4%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Down 1,004 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,650 | 2,757 | 1.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,050 | 3,205 | 1.09 | +448 bearers (+16.2%) | Up 600 places |
| 2020 | #11,054 | 2,745 | 0.92 | -460 bearers (-14.4%) | Down 1,004 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 Dasher 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 | #10,050 | #11,054 | -10.0% |
| Count | 3,205 | 2,745 | -14.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.09 | 0.92 | -15.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dasher bearers went from 3,205 to 2,745 (-14.4% change). The surname moved down 1,004 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,050 to #11,054.
FAQ
Dasher surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dasher?
Name Census estimates that about 3,148 living Americans carry the surname Dasher. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,880 residents.
How common is Dasher?
Dasher ranks #11,054 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.92 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 2,745 people with the surname Dasher. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,148), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.92 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 Dasher.
Has Dasher become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dasher went from 3,205 recorded bearers to 2,745. That is a decrease of 460 (-14.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,050 to #11,054.
What does the Census say about the background of Dasher?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dasher, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.5%. The next largest groups are Black (21.2%) and Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Dasher in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.5% (1,935 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dasher appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.5%), Black (21.2%), Two or More Races (3.8%). 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 Dasher (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 Dasher mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who makes wood shingles or barrels. 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 Dasher (0.92 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 have the last name Dasher?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Dasher on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.