2000
#49,249
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 401
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.15
Very Rare Last name
Diesing
A surname derived from a German place name, likely referring to someone from a location called Diesing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 439 Americans carry the last name Diesing. That puts it at #57,414 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 780,762 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Diesing 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
439
1 in 780,762
Census rank
#57,414
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
383
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 383 bearers of the surname Diesing in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 57414th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Diesing, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Diesing
The surname DIESING originated in Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. The earliest known spelling of the name was "Diesen" or "Diessing," which was likely derived from the German word "diese," meaning "this" or "these." It is believed that the name may have originated as a descriptive nickname for someone who frequently used the word "diese" or as a reference to a specific location or place.
The name DIESING can be traced back to various regions of Germany, particularly in the southern and eastern parts of the country. In the 16th and 17th centuries, records show the presence of individuals with the surname DIESING in areas such as Bavaria, Saxony, and Silesia.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name DIESING appears in the Kirchenbuch (church book) of the town of Freiberg, Saxony, in 1586, where a certain Hans Diesing is listed as a resident. In the 17th century, the name can be found in the records of the town of Zwickau, also in Saxony, with the mention of a family named DIESING in 1637.
Over the centuries, the name DIESING has been associated with various individuals of note. In the 18th century, Johann Baptist Diesing (1720-1789) was a renowned Bavarian architect and master builder, responsible for the design and construction of several churches and public buildings in the region.
In the 19th century, Christian Diesing (1800-1867) was a German botanist and bryologist (a specialist in the study of mosses and liverworts), who made significant contributions to the field of bryology through his extensive research and publications.
Another notable bearer of the surname DIESING was Karl Moritz Diesing (1800-1867), a German zoologist and parasitologist who authored several influential works on parasitic worms and their classification.
In the 20th century, Hans Diesing (1904-1993) was a German composer and music educator, known for his contributions to the field of choral and instrumental music education in Germany.
Additionally, the name DIESING has been associated with various place names and geographical locations throughout Germany, such as Diessen, a town in Bavaria, and Diessingen, a municipality in Baden-Württemberg.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Diesing
Among Census respondents with the surname Diesing, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Diesing 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 Diesing surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.8% · 363
- Two or more races2.3% · 9
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 3
- Black or African American0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Diesing
Diesing 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
#50,771
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 411
+10 bearers (+2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 1,522 places
2020
#57,414
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 383
-28 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 6,643 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #49,249 | 401 | 0.15 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #50,771 | 411 | 0.14 | +10 bearers (+2.5%) | Down 1,522 places |
| 2020 | #57,414 | 383 | 0.13 | -28 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 6,643 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 Diesing 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 | #50,771 | #57,414 | -13.1% |
| Count | 411 | 383 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.14 | 0.13 | -8.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Diesing bearers went from 411 to 383 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 6,643 positions in the national ranking, going from #50,771 to #57,414.
FAQ
Diesing surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Diesing?
Name Census estimates that about 439 living Americans carry the surname Diesing. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 780,762 residents.
How common is Diesing?
Diesing ranks #57,414 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 383 people with the surname Diesing. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (439), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Diesing.
Has Diesing become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Diesing went from 411 recorded bearers to 383. That is a decrease of 28 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #50,771 to #57,414.
What does the Census say about the background of Diesing?
Among Census respondents with the surname Diesing, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.3%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Diesing in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.8% (363 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Diesing appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.8%), Two or More Races (2.3%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Diesing (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 Diesing mean?
A surname derived from a German place name, likely referring to someone from a location called Diesing. 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 Diesing (0.13 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 Diesing?
You can see how many people have the surname Diesing on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.