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

DePauw, 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 DePauw surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of DePauw in America

DePauw is the 29626th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The DePauw surname appeared 795 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 DePauw.

We can also compare 2010 data for DePauw 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 DePauw

The surname DEPAUW originated in the Netherlands and Belgium during the late medieval period. It is derived from the Dutch words "de" meaning "the" and "pauw" meaning "peacock." This suggests the name may have been initially used as a nickname for someone who had a fanciful or showy manner, or who may have been associated with the breeding or trading of peacocks.

The earliest recorded instances of the DEPAUW surname date back to the late 15th century in the regions of Flanders and Brabant. It appears in various municipal records and tax rolls from towns like Ghent, Bruges, and Antwerp. There are also references to a DEPAUW family living in the village of Ekeren near Antwerp in the early 16th century.

One of the earliest known bearers of the DEPAUW name was Jan DEPAUW, a prominent merchant and alderman in the city of Ghent who lived from around 1475 to 1542. He was involved in the local government and played a role in the city's resistance against the rule of the Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.

Another notable figure was Pieter DEPAUW, a Flemish painter active in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was born in Antwerp around 1564 and is known for his religious paintings and altarpieces commissioned for churches in Flanders and the Netherlands.

In the 17th century, the DEPAUW name began appearing in various areas of the Dutch Republic, particularly in the provinces of Holland and Zeeland. This was likely due to the migration of families from the southern Netherlands during the Eighty Years' War between the Dutch and Spanish.

One example from this period is Adriaen DEPAUW, a Dutch Golden Age painter born in Rotterdam in 1642. He specialized in portraits and genre scenes depicting everyday life in Holland.

Another individual of note was Cornelis DEPAUW, a Dutch writer and poet who lived from 1684 to 1753. He was born in Leiden and is remembered for his satirical works criticizing the social and political climate of his time.

As the DEPAUW name spread across Europe over the centuries, it also took on variations in spelling such as DEPAU, DEPAUWE, and DEPAUW. Today, it remains a fairly common surname in the Netherlands, Belgium, and among communities of Dutch and Flemish descent around the world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name DePauw

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

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

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

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