2000
#3,802
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,563
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.17
Rare Last name
Dell
An English locational surname denoting someone who lived near a small valley or dell.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,176 Americans carry the last name Dell. That puts it at #4,805 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.39 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 41,922 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dell 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 Dell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.2K
1 in 41,922
Census rank
#4,805
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,130 bearers of the surname Dell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.39 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4805th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dell, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dell
The surname Dell originates from England and can be traced back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old English word 'dell', meaning a small valley or hollow. The surname was likely first adopted by someone who lived near or in a dell.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Dell can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from the year 1166, where a person named Radulfus del is mentioned. The spelling 'del' is an early form of the modern 'dell'.
In the Domesday Book of 1086, there are several references to places with the word 'dell' in their names, such as Dellecumb in Somerset and Delleburn in Sussex. These place names may have influenced the adoption of the surname Dell in those areas.
Notable individuals with the surname Dell include John Dell (1627-1686), an English Puritan divine and author who wrote several theological works. Another prominent figure was Thomas Dell (1509-1594), an English goldsmith and Member of Parliament for the City of London.
William Dell (1607-1669) was an English Anglican clergyman and writer who supported the Parliamentary cause during the English Civil War. He was a prominent member of the group known as the 'Dissenting Brethren' and authored several influential works on church government.
In the 18th century, William Dell (1755-1828) was an English clergyman and mathematician who served as the Lucasian Professor of Mathematics at the University of Cambridge from 1804 to 1828.
The surname Dell has also been associated with the Dell family, who established the successful computer company Dell Inc. in 1984. The company's founder, Michael Dell (born 1965), is a prominent figure in the technology industry.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dell
Among Census respondents with the surname Dell, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Dell 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 Dell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White83.5% · 5,957
- Black or African American8.0% · 570
- Two or more races4.0% · 286
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 240
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 59
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dell
Dell 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
#4,305
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,255
-308 bearers (-3.6%)
Per 100,000 2.80
Rank movement Down 503 places
2020
#4,805
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,130
-1,125 bearers (-13.6%)
Per 100,000 2.39
Rank movement Down 500 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,802 | 8,563 | 3.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,305 | 8,255 | 2.80 | -308 bearers (-3.6%) | Down 503 places |
| 2020 | #4,805 | 7,130 | 2.39 | -1,125 bearers (-13.6%) | Down 500 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 Dell 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 | #4,305 | #4,805 | -11.6% |
| Count | 8,255 | 7,130 | -13.6% |
| Per 100K | 2.80 | 2.39 | -14.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dell bearers went from 8,255 to 7,130 (-13.6% change). The surname moved down 500 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,305 to #4,805.
FAQ
Dell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dell?
Name Census estimates that about 8,176 living Americans carry the surname Dell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 41,922 residents.
How common is Dell?
Dell ranks #4,805 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.39 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 7,130 people with the surname Dell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,176), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.39 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.39 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 Dell.
Has Dell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dell went from 8,255 recorded bearers to 7,130. That is a decrease of 1,125 (-13.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,305 to #4,805.
What does the Census say about the background of Dell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dell, the largest self-reported group is White at 83.5%. The next largest groups are Black (8.0%) and Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Dell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 83.5% (5,957 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (83.5%), Black (8.0%), Two or More Races (4.0%). 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 Dell (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 Dell mean?
An English locational surname denoting someone who lived near a small valley or dell. 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 Dell (2.39 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 Dell?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Dell, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.