2000
#14,550
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,878
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.70
Rare Last name
Dedmon
A surname of English origin, derived from a place name meaning "valley of the dead man."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,140 Americans carry the last name Dedmon. That puts it at #15,162 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 160,166 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dedmon 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
2.1K
1 in 160,166
Census rank
#15,162
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,866 bearers of the surname Dedmon in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15162nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dedmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dedmon
The surname Dedmon is of English origin, deriving from the Old English words "dene" meaning valley, and "munde" meaning protection, therefore signifying a person who lived in a protected valley. The name was prominently concentrated in the counties of Gloucestershire and Herefordshire during the medieval period.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is spelled "Denemund". This document, commissioned by William the Conqueror, was a survey of landholdings across England and parts of Wales. The entry suggests that the name had already been established in the region by the late 11th century.
In the 13th century, records show variations of the name such as "Denemonde" and "Denmonde" being used in the county of Gloucestershire. This likely reflects the influence of Norman French on the spelling of English names during this period.
One notable early bearer of the name was Sir John Dedmon (c. 1280 - 1349), a knight who fought alongside King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War against France. He was awarded lands in Herefordshire for his service.
Another historical figure with this surname was Richard Dedmon (c. 1520 - 1587), a wealthy merchant and alderman in the city of Bristol. He was known for his philanthropic contributions, including the founding of a grammar school in the nearby village of Westbury-on-Trym.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the name continued to evolve, with spellings such as "Dedmonde" and "Dedmun" appearing in parish records across the West Country region of England.
In the late 18th century, the spelling "Dedmon" became more standardized, as seen in the birth record of William Dedmon (1782 - 1856), a farmer from the village of Dymock in Gloucestershire.
Another notable figure was Elizabeth Dedmon (1810 - 1892), a pioneering educator who established one of the first schools for girls in the city of Bath. Her efforts helped pave the way for greater access to education for women in Victorian England.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dedmon
Among Census respondents with the surname Dedmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dedmon 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 Dedmon surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White70.4% · 1,314
- Black or African American18.9% · 353
- Two or more races5.3% · 98
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 25
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dedmon
Dedmon 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
#14,933
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,982
+104 bearers (+5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.67
Rank movement Down 383 places
2020
#15,162
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,866
-116 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 229 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,550 | 1,878 | 0.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,933 | 1,982 | 0.67 | +104 bearers (+5.5%) | Down 383 places |
| 2020 | #15,162 | 1,866 | 0.62 | -116 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 229 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 Dedmon 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 | #14,933 | #15,162 | -1.5% |
| Count | 1,982 | 1,866 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.67 | 0.62 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dedmon bearers went from 1,982 to 1,866 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 229 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,933 to #15,162.
FAQ
Dedmon surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dedmon?
Name Census estimates that about 2,140 living Americans carry the surname Dedmon. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 160,166 residents.
How common is Dedmon?
Dedmon ranks #15,162 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 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 1,866 people with the surname Dedmon. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,140), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 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 Dedmon.
Has Dedmon become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dedmon went from 1,982 recorded bearers to 1,866. That is a decrease of 116 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,933 to #15,162.
What does the Census say about the background of Dedmon?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dedmon, the largest self-reported group is White at 70.4%. The next largest groups are Black (18.9%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Dedmon in the 2020 Census, accounting for 70.4% (1,314 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dedmon appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (70.4%), Black (18.9%), Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Dedmon (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 Dedmon mean?
A surname of English origin, derived from a place name meaning "valley of the dead man." 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 Dedmon (0.62 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 are called Dedmon?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many Americans have the surname Dedmon at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.