2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Dauth
A topographic surname derived from a Middle High German word meaning "forest" or "wooded place".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Dauth. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dauth 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Dauth in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dauth, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dauth
The surname Dauth is of Germanic origin, with roots tracing back to the 9th century in the region of modern-day Germany. It is derived from the Old High German word "dāg," meaning "day," and may have initially referred to someone who worked during the daytime or someone associated with daylight activities.
One of the earliest documented instances of the Dauth surname appears in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of medieval charters and documents from Saxony, dating back to the 12th century. The name is recorded as "Dauthi" in a charter from the year 1178, referring to a landowner in the region.
In the 13th century, the Dauth surname is found in various records from the Holy Roman Empire, including the Annales Egmundani, a chronicle of the Egmond Abbey in the Netherlands. This suggests that the name had spread beyond its German origins by this time.
One notable individual bearing the Dauth surname was Johannes Dauth, a German theologian and philosopher who lived in the 15th century (c. 1420-1490). He was a prominent figure at the University of Leipzig and authored several works on logic and metaphysics.
Another historical figure with the Dauth name was Christoph Dauth, a German painter and engraver from the 16th century (c. 1530-1595). He is known for his religious paintings and engravings, some of which can be found in churches and museums across Germany.
In the 17th century, the Dauth surname appears in the records of the Thirty Years' War, with mentions of soldiers and military personnel bearing the name. One such individual was Hans Dauth, a mercenary soldier who fought in the war between 1618 and 1648.
The 18th century saw the Dauth surname spread further across Europe, with records indicating individuals with this name living in various regions, including France, Austria, and Switzerland. One notable figure from this period was Johann Dauth, a German composer and organist born in 1725 in the town of Zittau.
In the 19th century, the Dauth surname continued to be found across German-speaking regions, with individuals bearing this name participating in various fields, including academia, arts, and literature. One prominent figure was Friedrich Dauth, a German writer and journalist born in 1830 in the city of Leipzig.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dauth
Among Census respondents with the surname Dauth, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Dauth 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 Dauth surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.7% · 110
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dauth
Dauth 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
#129,047
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 132
+8 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 1,861 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-17 bearers (-12.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 16,710 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #129,047 | 132 | 0.04 | +8 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 1,861 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -17 bearers (-12.9%) | Down 16,710 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 Dauth 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 | #129,047 | #145,757 | -12.9% |
| Count | 132 | 115 | -12.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dauth bearers went from 132 to 115 (-12.9% change). The surname moved down 16,710 positions in the national ranking, going from #129,047 to #145,757.
FAQ
Dauth surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dauth?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Dauth. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Dauth?
Dauth ranks #145,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 115 people with the surname Dauth. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Dauth.
Has Dauth become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dauth went from 132 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 17 (-12.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #129,047 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Dauth?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dauth, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Dauth in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (110 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dauth appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.7%), Hispanic (2.6%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Dauth (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 Dauth mean?
A topographic surname derived from a Middle High German word meaning "forest" or "wooded place". 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 Dauth (0.04 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 surname Dauth?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.