Find out how popular the last name Dean is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Dean.

Dean, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Dean surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dean in America

Dean is the 269th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dean surname appeared 114,030 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 39 people would have the surname Dean.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dean to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Dean

The surname DEAN has its origins in medieval England, where it first emerged in the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word "denu," meaning a valley or a hollow, and was initially used as a topographic name to identify someone who lived near or in a valley.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname DEAN can be found in the Curia Regis Rolls of 1201, where a certain Robertus de la Dene is mentioned. This suggests that the name was already in use by the early 13th century, with the "de la" prefix indicating the person's association with a particular location.

As the surname continued to spread across England, it evolved into various spellings, such as Deane, Deyn, and Dene, reflecting regional dialects and scribal variations. Some notable early bearers of the name include John de la Dene, who was recorded in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, and Thomas de la Dene, mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Nottinghamshire in 1346.

The surname DEAN also has a connection to several place names in England, such as Dean in Bedfordshire, Dean in Cumbria, and Dean in Hampshire. These place names, derived from the same Old English word "denu," may have contributed to the widespread adoption of the surname in those regions.

Throughout history, the DEAN surname has been associated with several notable individuals. One of the earliest was Gilbert de la Dene, a 13th-century English churchman who served as the Bishop of Llandaff from 1232 to 1245. In the 16th century, John Dene (c. 1490-1537) was a prominent English churchman and theologian who served as the Archbishop of Canterbury from 1501 to 1503.

Another notable figure was Henry Deane (1597-1653), an English clergyman and mathematician who published several works on mathematics and astronomy. In the literary world, William Dean Howells (1837-1920) was an influential American novelist, literary critic, and playwright who played a significant role in the rise of realism in American literature.

Moving into more recent times, Dizzy Dean (1910-1974), whose full name was Jay Hanna Dean, was a celebrated American baseball player and member of the National Baseball Hall of Fame. He played for the St. Louis Cardinals and was known for his exceptional pitching skills and colorful personality.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dean

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Dean.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Dean was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Dean has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Dean was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Dean, please contact us.

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