2000
#11,583
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,487
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.92
Rare Last name
Debose
French occupational surname referring to a hunchback, derived from the Old French word "bos" meaning "hump" or "hunch."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,936 Americans carry the last name Debose. That puts it at #11,709 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 116,742 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Debose 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
2.9K
1 in 116,742
Census rank
#11,709
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,560 bearers of the surname Debose in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11709th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Debose, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.9%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Debose
The surname DeBose has its origins in France, tracing back to the early medieval period around the 9th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old French words "de" meaning "of" and "bois" meaning "wood" or "forest." This suggests that the name likely referred to someone who lived near or worked in a wooded area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and properties compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. The name appears as "de Bois," referring to individuals residing in areas with a significant presence of woodlands.
As the name spread across Europe, various spellings emerged, including DeBose, DuBois, and Dubose. These variations reflect regional linguistic differences and the evolution of spelling conventions over time.
In the 13th century, a notable figure bearing the name was Robert de Bois, a prominent landowner and knight from Normandy, France. Another early record mentions Jehan DuBois, a merchant who lived in Paris during the late 14th century.
During the Renaissance period, the name gained prominence with individuals like Jean DuBois (1555-1624), a French philosopher and theologian who played a significant role in the debates surrounding Calvinism and Catholicism.
In the 17th century, Jacques DuBois (1625-1696) was a French explorer and fur trader who established a settlement in what is now New York City, known as the Bushwick area, derived from the Dutch "Boswijck," meaning "town in the woods."
Moving to the 19th century, Edward DeBose (1820-1888) was a notable American jurist and politician from South Carolina, serving as a judge and later as a member of the United States House of Representatives.
Another prominent figure with the surname was Blanche DuBois, a fictional character created by playwright Tennessee Williams in his iconic work "A Streetcar Named Desire" (1947), whose name reflects the French origins of the name.
While these examples provide a glimpse into the historical significance of the surname DeBose, it is important to note that the name has been carried by numerous individuals throughout various periods and regions, each contributing to its rich and diverse heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Debose
Among Census respondents with the surname Debose, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.9%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and Two or More Races (5.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Debose 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 Debose surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American77.9% · 1,995
- White11.8% · 303
- Two or more races5.9% · 152
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 87
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 12
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Debose
Debose 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
#11,534
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,727
+240 bearers (+9.7%)
Per 100,000 0.92
Rank movement Up 49 places
2020
#11,709
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,560
-167 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Down 175 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,583 | 2,487 | 0.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,534 | 2,727 | 0.92 | +240 bearers (+9.7%) | Up 49 places |
| 2020 | #11,709 | 2,560 | 0.86 | -167 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 175 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 Debose 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 | #11,534 | #11,709 | -1.5% |
| Count | 2,727 | 2,560 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.92 | 0.86 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Debose bearers went from 2,727 to 2,560 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 175 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,534 to #11,709.
FAQ
Debose surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Debose?
Name Census estimates that about 2,936 living Americans carry the surname Debose. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 116,742 residents.
How common is Debose?
Debose ranks #11,709 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 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 2,560 people with the surname Debose. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,936), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 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 Debose.
Has Debose become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Debose went from 2,727 recorded bearers to 2,560. That is a decrease of 167 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,534 to #11,709.
What does the Census say about the background of Debose?
Among Census respondents with the surname Debose, the largest self-reported group is Black at 77.9%. The next largest groups are White (11.8%) and Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Debose in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.9% (1,995 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Debose appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (77.9%), White (11.8%), Two or More Races (5.9%). 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 Debose (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 Debose mean?
French occupational surname referring to a hunchback, derived from the Old French word "bos" meaning "hump" or "hunch." 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 Debose (0.86 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 Debose?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.