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

Dey, 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 Dey surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dey in America

Dey is the 8019th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dey surname appeared 4,127 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Dey.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dey 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 Dey

The surname "DEY" is of English origin, and it is derived from the Old English word "dæg," which means "day." This name likely originated as a nickname for someone who was born during the day or for someone whose occupation was related to daylight hours.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname "DEY" can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Daye." This suggests that the name was already in use in England during the Norman Conquest.

In the 13th century, the name "DEY" was also spelled as "Dai," "Day," and "Deye." These variations were common due to the lack of standardized spelling during that time period.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname "DEY" was John Dey, a merchant who lived in London in the 14th century. He is mentioned in records from the city's Guild of Mercers.

During the 16th century, the surname "DEY" was associated with several notable figures, including Richard Dey, who was a member of the English Parliament in 1559, and Thomas Dey, a prominent playwright and poet who lived in London in the late 1500s.

In the 17th century, the name "DEY" gained recognition through the military exploits of Sir John Dey, an English general who served in the English Civil War and fought alongside Oliver Cromwell. Sir John Dey was born in 1610 and died in 1677.

Another notable bearer of the surname "DEY" was Thomas Dey, a wealthy merchant and landowner who lived in New Jersey, United States, in the late 17th and early 18th centuries. He was one of the founders of the town of Freehold, New Jersey, and his name is associated with several place names in the area, such as Dey's Plantation and Dey's Brook.

In the 19th century, the surname "DEY" was carried by several prominent figures, including William Dey, a British naval officer who served in the Napoleonic Wars and was born in 1785, and John Dey, an American politician who served as Governor of New Jersey from 1833 to 1836.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dey

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

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

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

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