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

Deaton, 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 Deaton surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Deaton in America

Deaton is the 2572nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Deaton surname appeared 14,052 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Deaton.

We can also compare 2010 data for Deaton 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 Deaton

The surname Deaton is of English origin and is believed to have originated in the 13th century. It is a locational name derived from the place name Deighton, which was found in various parts of England, including Yorkshire, Northamptonshire, and Gloucestershire.

The name Deighton itself is thought to have evolved from the Old English words "deag" meaning "dye" and "tun" meaning "farm" or "settlement." This suggests that the name may have been associated with a settlement or area where dyeing activities took place.

Early records of the name can be found in various historical documents. For instance, the Deaton surname appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327, where a John de Deyton is mentioned. In the Subsidy Rolls of Yorkshire from 1379, a Thomas de Deghton is recorded.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Deaton surname can be found in the Calendars of Wills and Administrations in the Prerogative Court of Canterbury, where a William Deyton from Coventry is mentioned in 1486.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname Deaton. One such person was Sir Thomas Deighton (1628-1689), an English merchant and politician who served as Lord Mayor of York from 1683 to 1684.

Another notable figure was Richard Deaton (1610-1655), an English clergyman and academic who served as Master of Pembroke College, Oxford, from 1642 to 1655.

In the literary world, there was John Deighton (1830-1875), an English writer and journalist who published several novels and works of non-fiction in the mid-19th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Deaton spelling can be found in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1334, where a John Deyaton is mentioned.

In the United States, one notable individual with the Deaton surname was Phillip R. Deaton (1918-1997), a chemist and educator who served as the 15th president of Kansas State University from 1975 to 1986.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Deaton

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

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 Deaton 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 Deaton 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 Deaton was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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