2000
#16,022
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,663
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.62
Rare Last name
Deshong
French occupational surname for a dealer or merchant, derived from Old French "changer" meaning "to change or exchange."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,837 Americans carry the last name Deshong. That puts it at #17,273 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.54 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 186,584 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Deshong 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
1.8K
1 in 186,584
Census rank
#17,273
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,602 bearers of the surname Deshong in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.54 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17273rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Deshong, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.1%. The next largest groups are Black (12.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Deshong
The surname DESHONG is believed to have originated in France during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old French words "des honges," which translates to "from the marshes" or "from the swamps." This suggests that the earliest bearers of this name likely resided in or near marshy or swampy regions.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the DESHONG surname can be found in the Froissart Chronicles, a collection of historical narratives written by the 14th-century French historian Jean Froissart. In these chronicles, a knight named Renaud DESHONG is mentioned as participating in the Battle of Poitiers during the Hundred Years' War in 1356.
The DESHONG name also appears in several medieval land records and property deeds from the 15th and 16th centuries in the regions of Normandy and Brittany in northern France. These records often include variations in spelling, such as DESHONGE, DESHONGES, and DESHONGES.
In the late 16th century, a notable figure named Jacques DESHONG (1552-1618) was a prominent merchant and landowner in the city of Rennes, Brittany. He is recorded as having played a significant role in the local economy and trade affairs of the region during his lifetime.
Another historical figure bearing the DESHONG surname was Marguerite DESHONG (1620-1692), a French noblewoman and landowner who resided in the Normandy region. She is mentioned in several contemporary accounts and records as a prominent figure in her local community.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the DESHONG name spread beyond France as members of the family immigrated to other parts of Europe and the New World. One notable individual was Pierre DESHONG (1678-1742), a French Huguenot who fled religious persecution and settled in the Dutch Republic, where he became a successful merchant and trader.
As the DESHONG name continued to disperse across different regions and countries, various branches of the family adopted localized spellings and variations, such as DESHONGE, DESHONGER, and DESHONGER, reflecting the influence of local languages and dialects.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Deshong
Among Census respondents with the surname Deshong, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.1%. The next largest groups are Black (12.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Deshong 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 Deshong surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.1% · 1,284
- Black or African American12.3% · 197
- Two or more races3.5% · 56
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 10
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Deshong
Deshong 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
#14,545
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,049
+386 bearers (+23.2%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Up 1,477 places
2020
#17,273
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,602
-447 bearers (-21.8%)
Per 100,000 0.54
Rank movement Down 2,728 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,022 | 1,663 | 0.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #14,545 | 2,049 | 0.69 | +386 bearers (+23.2%) | Up 1,477 places |
| 2020 | #17,273 | 1,602 | 0.54 | -447 bearers (-21.8%) | Down 2,728 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 Deshong 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 | #14,545 | #17,273 | -18.8% |
| Count | 2,049 | 1,602 | -21.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.69 | 0.54 | -22.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Deshong bearers went from 2,049 to 1,602 (-21.8% change). The surname moved down 2,728 positions in the national ranking, going from #14,545 to #17,273.
FAQ
Deshong surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Deshong?
Name Census estimates that about 1,837 living Americans carry the surname Deshong. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 186,584 residents.
How common is Deshong?
Deshong ranks #17,273 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.54 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 1,602 people with the surname Deshong. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,837), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.54 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.54 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 Deshong.
Has Deshong become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Deshong went from 2,049 recorded bearers to 1,602. That is a decrease of 447 (-21.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #14,545 to #17,273.
What does the Census say about the background of Deshong?
Among Census respondents with the surname Deshong, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.1%. The next largest groups are Black (12.3%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Deshong in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.1% (1,284 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Deshong appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.1%), Black (12.3%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Deshong (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 Deshong mean?
French occupational surname for a dealer or merchant, derived from Old French "changer" meaning "to change or exchange." 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 Deshong (0.54 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 Deshong?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.