2000
#9,242
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,244
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.20
Rare Last name
Daum
German occupational surname referring to a person who works with or sells rope or twine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,323 Americans carry the last name Daum. That puts it at #10,559 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,146 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Daum 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
3.3K
1 in 103,146
Census rank
#10,559
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,898 bearers of the surname Daum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10559th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Daum, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Daum
The surname Daum originated in Germany during the late medieval period, approximately between the 13th and 15th centuries. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Daumen," which means "thumb" or "inch." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a nickname or a descriptive term for someone with a distinctive thumb or a small stature.
The earliest recorded instances of the name Daum can be traced back to various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria, Saxony, and the Rhineland. It is worth noting that the name may have undergone slight variations in spelling over time, including Daum, Daumb, and Daume.
One of the earliest known references to the name Daum can be found in the Bürgermeisterbuch (Mayor's Book) of the city of Constance, dating back to the 14th century. This historical record mentions an individual named Hans Daum, who held the position of a master weaver in the city.
In the 15th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Daum was Johann Daum, a German painter and engraver from Nuremberg. His works, which primarily consisted of religious scenes and portraits, were highly regarded during the Renaissance period.
Another prominent individual with the surname Daum was Johann Christian Daum, a German composer and organist who lived from 1665 to 1721. He is known for his contributions to church music and his compositions for various instruments, including the organ.
During the 18th century, the name Daum was associated with the Daum family of glassmakers from Nancy, France. The family's glassworks, established in 1781, gained international recognition for their exceptional craftsmanship and innovative designs in decorative glass objects.
In the 19th century, a notable figure bearing the surname Daum was Georg Daum, a German philosopher and theologian who lived from 1818 to 1898. He is best known for his works on ethics and his contributions to the field of moral philosophy.
Throughout history, the surname Daum has also been linked to various place names and locations, such as Daumendorf, a village in Thuringia, Germany, and Daumesnil, a commune in the Vosges department of northeastern France.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Daum
Among Census respondents with the surname Daum, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Daum 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 Daum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 2,658
- Two or more races3.4% · 99
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 89
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 25
- Black or African American0.8% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Daum
Daum 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
#10,219
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,154
-90 bearers (-2.8%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 977 places
2020
#10,559
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,898
-256 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 340 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,242 | 3,244 | 1.20 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,219 | 3,154 | 1.07 | -90 bearers (-2.8%) | Down 977 places |
| 2020 | #10,559 | 2,898 | 0.97 | -256 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 340 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 Daum 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 | #10,219 | #10,559 | -3.3% |
| Count | 3,154 | 2,898 | -8.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.07 | 0.97 | -9.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Daum bearers went from 3,154 to 2,898 (-8.1% change). The surname moved down 340 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,219 to #10,559.
FAQ
Daum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Daum?
Name Census estimates that about 3,323 living Americans carry the surname Daum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,146 residents.
How common is Daum?
Daum ranks #10,559 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,898 people with the surname Daum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,323), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Daum.
Has Daum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Daum went from 3,154 recorded bearers to 2,898. That is a decrease of 256 (-8.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,219 to #10,559.
What does the Census say about the background of Daum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Daum, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Daum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (2,658 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Daum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Daum (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 Daum mean?
German occupational surname referring to a person who works with or sells rope or twine. 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 Daum (0.97 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 common is the surname Daum?
See how many Americans have the surname Daum on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.