2000
#5,778
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,481
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.03
Rare Last name
Dearing
Derived from a place name meaning "dweller by the deer enclosure" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,036 Americans carry the last name Dearing. That puts it at #6,231 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 56,785 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dearing 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 Dearing with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.0K
1 in 56,785
Census rank
#6,231
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,264 bearers of the surname Dearing in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6231st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dearing, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dearing
The surname Dearing has its origins in England and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old English word "dere," which means "deer," and was likely an occupational name for a hunter or someone who worked with deer.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dearing can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1166, where a person named Robert Deringg is mentioned. This suggests that variations of the spelling, such as Deringg or Dering, were common in the early days.
The name Dearing may also have been influenced by place names, particularly the village of Deringhall in Kent, which was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086. This may indicate that some individuals bearing the name Dearing were once residents or landowners in this area.
In the 14th century, records show individuals named John Dering and Thomas Dering living in Kent, suggesting that the name had spread and taken root in that region by that time.
Over the centuries, several notable individuals have carried the surname Dearing. One of the most prominent was Sir Edward Dering (1598-1644), an English politician and member of Parliament who played a significant role in the English Civil War. Another notable figure was John Dearing (1759-1837), a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War and the Napoleonic Wars.
Other historical figures with the surname Dearing include Richard Dearing (1670-1738), an English clergyman and author, and James Dearing (1840-1865), a Confederate cavalry officer during the American Civil War who was killed in action at the Battle of High Bridge.
In the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Dearing also appeared in various records and documents in Ireland, suggesting that some individuals with this surname may have migrated from England to Ireland during that time period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dearing
Among Census respondents with the surname Dearing, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Dearing 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 Dearing surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.8% · 4,412
- Black or African American6.5% · 343
- Two or more races4.6% · 241
- Hispanic or Latino4.0% · 211
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 39
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dearing
Dearing 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
#5,942
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,794
+313 bearers (+5.7%)
Per 100,000 1.96
Rank movement Down 164 places
2020
#6,231
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,264
-530 bearers (-9.1%)
Per 100,000 1.76
Rank movement Down 289 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,778 | 5,481 | 2.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,942 | 5,794 | 1.96 | +313 bearers (+5.7%) | Down 164 places |
| 2020 | #6,231 | 5,264 | 1.76 | -530 bearers (-9.1%) | Down 289 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 Dearing 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 | #5,942 | #6,231 | -4.9% |
| Count | 5,794 | 5,264 | -9.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.96 | 1.76 | -10.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dearing bearers went from 5,794 to 5,264 (-9.1% change). The surname moved down 289 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,942 to #6,231.
FAQ
Dearing surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dearing?
Name Census estimates that about 6,036 living Americans carry the surname Dearing. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 56,785 residents.
How common is Dearing?
Dearing ranks #6,231 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.76 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,264 people with the surname Dearing. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,036), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.76 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Dearing.
Has Dearing become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dearing went from 5,794 recorded bearers to 5,264. That is a decrease of 530 (-9.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,942 to #6,231.
What does the Census say about the background of Dearing?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dearing, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.8%. The next largest groups are Black (6.5%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dearing in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.8% (4,412 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dearing appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.8%), Black (6.5%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Dearing (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 Dearing mean?
Derived from a place name meaning "dweller by the deer enclosure" in Old English. 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 Dearing (1.76 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 share the surname Dearing?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.