2000
#141,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Dawan
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "high place" or "elevated".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 124 Americans carry the last name Dawan. That puts it at #150,935 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,764,148 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dawan 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
124
1 in 2,764,148
Census rank
#150,935
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
108
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 108 bearers of the surname Dawan in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 150935th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dawan, the largest self-reported group is Black at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.8%) and White (5.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dawan
The surname DAWAN is believed to have originated in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the region now known as Pakistan. This name can be traced back to the 16th century, during the Mughal Empire era. It is derived from the Persian word "dawan," which means "to run" or "to move swiftly."
One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the imperial archives of the Mughal Empire, where a nobleman named Dawan Khan is mentioned as serving under the reign of Emperor Akbar in the late 16th century. This suggests that the name was already in use among the elite classes during that time period.
In the 17th century, the DAWAN surname appears in various regional records and manuscripts across what is now modern-day Pakistan and northern India. Some of these records include land ownership documents and tax registers, indicating that families bearing this name held significant social and economic status.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the DAWAN surname began to spread more widely across the Indian subcontinent, with notable individuals emerging in various fields. One such individual was Mirza Dawan Baig (1801-1878), a renowned Urdu poet and scholar who lived during the latter years of the Mughal Empire.
Another prominent figure was Nawab Dawan Yar Jung (1822-1892), a military commander and statesman who served in the court of the Nizam of Hyderabad. His descendants continued to play influential roles in the political and administrative spheres of the Hyderabad State during the British Raj era.
In the 20th century, the DAWAN surname gained further recognition with individuals like Mahmud Dawan (1908-1981), a celebrated Pakistani author and playwright known for his contribution to Urdu literature. Additionally, Iftikhar Dawan (born 1941) is a renowned Pakistani cricketer who represented his country in international competitions during the 1960s and 1970s.
While the DAWAN surname has its roots in the Indian subcontinent, it has since spread to various parts of the world due to migration and diaspora communities. However, its historical origins can be traced back to the Persian-influenced cultures of the Mughal Empire and the regions that now constitute modern-day Pakistan and northern India.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dawan
Among Census respondents with the surname Dawan, the largest self-reported group is Black at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.8%) and White (5.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Dawan 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 Dawan surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American73.1% · 79
- Asian and Pacific Islander14.8% · 16
- White5.6% · 6
- Two or more races4.6% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dawan
Dawan 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
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
+19 bearers (+17.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 8,740 places
2020
#150,935
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-19 bearers (-15.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 17,887 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #141,788 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | +19 bearers (+17.6%) | Up 8,740 places |
| 2020 | #150,935 | 108 | 0.04 | -19 bearers (-15.0%) | Down 17,887 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 Dawan 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 | #133,048 | #150,935 | -13.4% |
| Count | 127 | 108 | -15.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -9.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dawan bearers went from 127 to 108 (-15.0% change). The surname moved down 17,887 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #150,935.
FAQ
Dawan surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dawan?
Name Census estimates that about 124 living Americans carry the surname Dawan. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,764,148 residents.
How common is Dawan?
Dawan ranks #150,935 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 108 people with the surname Dawan. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (124), 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 Dawan.
Has Dawan become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dawan went from 127 recorded bearers to 108. That is a decrease of 19 (-15.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #150,935.
What does the Census say about the background of Dawan?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dawan, the largest self-reported group is Black at 73.1%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (14.8%) and White (5.6%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dawan in the 2020 Census, accounting for 73.1% (79 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dawan appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (73.1%), Asian/Pacific Islander (14.8%), White (5.6%). 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 Dawan (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 Dawan mean?
A surname of Arabic origin meaning "high place" or "elevated". 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 Dawan (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 common is the surname Dawan?
You can see how many people have the surname Dawan on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.