2000
#12,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,327
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.86
Rare Last name
Daw
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a jackdaw's nesting place or near a ravine.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,875 Americans carry the last name Daw. That puts it at #11,929 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,219 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Daw 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 Daw with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.9K
1 in 119,219
Census rank
#11,929
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,507 bearers of the surname Daw in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11929th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Daw, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.7%) and Black (6.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Daw
The surname DAW is of Anglo-Saxon origin, deriving from the Old English word "daw" meaning a jackdaw or small crow. It is believed to have originally been a nickname given to someone who had a resemblance to the bird or shared one of its characteristics, such as being noisy or mischievous.
The earliest recorded instance of the surname DAW dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Daw" in the county of Lincolnshire. This suggests that the name was already well-established in England by the late 11th century.
During the medieval period, the name was often spelled in various ways, including "Dawe," "Daw," and "Dawes." These spelling variations were common before the standardization of English surnames in the 16th and 17th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the surname was John Daw, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1205. Other notable individuals with the surname include William Daw, a prominent merchant in London during the 14th century, and Sir John Daw, a Member of Parliament for Cornwall in 1547.
In the 16th century, the surname was sometimes associated with place names, such as Dawlish in Devon, which was originally recorded as "Daw's Liss" or "Daw's Meadow." This suggests that some bearers of the name may have taken on a locational surname based on their place of origin or residence.
Other notable figures throughout history with the surname DAW include:
1. Sir Thomas Daw (1504-1561), an English diplomat and ambassador to France during the reign of Queen Mary I.
2. George Daw (1673-1718), an English architect and surveyor who designed several churches and buildings in London.
3. Mary Daw (1784-1856), a British author and poet known for her works on religious and moral themes.
4. Joseph Daw (1825-1888), an English artist and engraver who specialized in landscapes and architectural subjects.
5. William Daw (1870-1945), a British trade unionist and politician who served as a Member of Parliament for the Labour Party.
The surname DAW continues to be found predominantly in England, particularly in the counties of Devon, Somerset, and Gloucestershire, reflecting its Anglo-Saxon roots and historical distribution.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Daw
Among Census respondents with the surname Daw, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.7%) and Black (6.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Daw 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 Daw surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White73.2% · 1,836
- American Indian and Alaska Native6.7% · 167
- Black or African American6.5% · 163
- Asian and Pacific Islander5.8% · 145
- Two or more races4.1% · 103
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 93
Timeline
Historical Census data for Daw
Daw 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
#11,736
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,670
+343 bearers (+14.7%)
Per 100,000 0.91
Rank movement Up 525 places
2020
#11,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,507
-163 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 193 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,261 | 2,327 | 0.86 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,736 | 2,670 | 0.91 | +343 bearers (+14.7%) | Up 525 places |
| 2020 | #11,929 | 2,507 | 0.84 | -163 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 193 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 Daw 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 | #11,736 | #11,929 | -1.6% |
| Count | 2,670 | 2,507 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.91 | 0.84 | -7.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Daw bearers went from 2,670 to 2,507 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 193 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,736 to #11,929.
FAQ
Daw surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Daw?
Name Census estimates that about 2,875 living Americans carry the surname Daw. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,219 residents.
How common is Daw?
Daw ranks #11,929 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 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 2,507 people with the surname Daw. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,875), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 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 Daw.
Has Daw become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Daw went from 2,670 recorded bearers to 2,507. That is a decrease of 163 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,736 to #11,929.
What does the Census say about the background of Daw?
Among Census respondents with the surname Daw, the largest self-reported group is White at 73.2%. The next largest groups are American Indian/Alaska Native (6.7%) and Black (6.5%). 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 Daw in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.2% (1,836 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Daw appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (73.2%), American Indian/Alaska Native (6.7%), Black (6.5%). 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 Daw (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 Daw mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a jackdaw's nesting place or near a ravine. 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 Daw (0.84 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 Daw?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.