2000
#9,998
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,974
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.10
Rare Last name
Dewalt
An occupational surname referring to someone who lived in a wood or forest.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,278 Americans carry the last name Dewalt. That puts it at #10,674 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.96 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 104,562 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dewalt 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
3.3K
1 in 104,562
Census rank
#10,674
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,859 bearers of the surname Dewalt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.96 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10674th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dewalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.4%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dewalt
The surname DEWALT has its origins in Germany and the Low Countries, particularly in the regions of Westphalia and the Rhineland. It is derived from the Middle German words "de Walhe" or "de Walhen," which were used to refer to people of Celtic or Romance origin, often from France or Wallonia. The name likely emerged in the 12th or 13th century as a way to distinguish these individuals from the Germanic population.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Cistercian abbey of Altenberg, near Cologne, where a monk named Herman de Walhen is mentioned in a document from the year 1225. Another early reference is in the records of the city of Aachen, where a man called Johan de Walen is listed in a tax register from 1285.
During the late Middle Ages and the Renaissance period, the name began to spread across various regions of Germany and the Netherlands. In the 16th century, a notable figure named Matthias DEWALT (1529-1591) was a renowned theologian and professor at the University of Heidelberg.
As the name evolved, it underwent several spelling variations, including De Walen, De Walhen, and De Walhern, before settling on the more modern form of DEWALT. In the 17th century, a prominent Dutch painter, Cornelis DEWALT (1623-1667), gained recognition for his still-life and landscape works.
Another historical figure of note was Johann DEWALT (1712-1789), a German immigrant to Pennsylvania who played a significant role in the early development of the American gunsmithing industry. He is credited with establishing one of the first rifling mills in the Colonies, providing high-quality rifles for the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War.
In the 19th century, the DEWALT name continued to gain prominence, with individuals such as the German-American inventor and industrialist Gottlieb DEWALT (1837-1907), who founded the DEWALT Power Tool Company in Pennsylvania, which became a leading manufacturer of power tools and construction equipment.
Throughout its history, the surname DEWALT has been borne by numerous notable individuals across various fields, including academics, artists, entrepreneurs, and military figures, reflecting its rich heritage and cultural significance.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dewalt
Among Census respondents with the surname Dewalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.4%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) and Two or More Races (4.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Dewalt 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 Dewalt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White61.4% · 1,754
- Black or African American30.4% · 869
- Two or more races4.0% · 115
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 96
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dewalt
Dewalt 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
#10,326
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,120
+146 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.06
Rank movement Down 328 places
2020
#10,674
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,859
-261 bearers (-8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.96
Rank movement Down 348 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,998 | 2,974 | 1.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,326 | 3,120 | 1.06 | +146 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 328 places |
| 2020 | #10,674 | 2,859 | 0.96 | -261 bearers (-8.4%) | Down 348 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 Dewalt 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 | #10,326 | #10,674 | -3.4% |
| Count | 3,120 | 2,859 | -8.4% |
| Per 100K | 1.06 | 0.96 | -9.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dewalt bearers went from 3,120 to 2,859 (-8.4% change). The surname moved down 348 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,326 to #10,674.
FAQ
Dewalt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dewalt?
Name Census estimates that about 3,278 living Americans carry the surname Dewalt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 104,562 residents.
How common is Dewalt?
Dewalt ranks #10,674 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.96 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 2,859 people with the surname Dewalt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,278), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.96 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.96 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 Dewalt.
Has Dewalt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dewalt went from 3,120 recorded bearers to 2,859. That is a decrease of 261 (-8.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,326 to #10,674.
What does the Census say about the background of Dewalt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dewalt, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.4%. The next largest groups are Black (30.4%) 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 Dewalt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.4% (1,754 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dewalt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (61.4%), Black (30.4%), 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 Dewalt (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 Dewalt mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who lived in a wood or forest. 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 Dewalt (0.96 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 Dewalt?
See how many people have the last name Dewalt on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.