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

Debs, 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 Debs surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Debs in America

Debs is the 53667th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Debs surname appeared 385 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Debs.

We can also compare 2010 data for Debs 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 Debs

The surname DEBS has its origins in England and dates back to the late medieval period. It is derived from the Old English word "dæge," which means a male servant or manservant. The name likely originated as an occupational surname for someone who worked as a servant or attendant.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname DEBS can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, where it appears as "Debbe." This suggests that the name was already in use by the 13th century and may have been related to the place name Debden, which was historically spelled as "Debbedene" or "Debbedene."

In the Rotuli Hundredorum, a census-like record from the late 13th century, the name is listed as "Deb" and "Debbe," indicating variations in spelling during that time period. The surname DEBS is also mentioned in the Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327, further confirming its establishment in England by the 14th century.

One of the earliest notable individuals with the surname DEBS was Sir Robert Debs, who lived in the 15th century and served as Lord Mayor of London in 1446. Another prominent figure was Francis Debs (1591-1659), an English clergyman and academic who was a fellow of Corpus Christi College, Oxford, and served as the Rector of Sandridge, Hertfordshire.

In the 17th century, the surname DEBS appeared in various historical records, such as the Hearth Tax Rolls of Buckinghamshire from 1662, where it is listed as "Deb" and "Debs." This suggests that the spelling had stabilized by that time.

In more recent history, notable individuals with the surname DEBS include Eugene V. Debs (1855-1926), an American labor leader, socialist, and five-time presidential candidate for the Socialist Party of America. Another significant figure was Theodore Debs (1864-1945), a French-American artist and illustrator known for his work in the Art Nouveau style.

Other individuals bearing the surname DEBS include John Debs (1884-1962), an American baseball player who played for the St. Louis Cardinals and the Chicago Cubs in the early 20th century, and Marjorie Debs (1915-2008), an American journalist and author who wrote extensively about labor issues and social activism.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Debs

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

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

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

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