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

Diller, 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 Diller surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Diller in America

Diller is the 7710th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Diller surname appeared 4,306 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 Diller.

We can also compare 2010 data for Diller 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 Diller

The surname Diller is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "tille" meaning "dill" or "fennel". It likely originated as an occupational name for a grower or seller of dill or fennel in the medieval period.

The name first appeared in records from the 13th century in the regions of Bavaria and Swabia in southern Germany. Early variations of the spelling included Diller, Dillher, and Dillner. The name was also found in some areas of Switzerland during this time.

One of the earliest recorded references to the name is in the town records of Nürnberg, Germany, which mention a Johann Diller in 1349. Another early record is from the town of Ulm in 1402, which lists a Hans Diller as a resident.

In the 16th century, the name spread to other parts of Germany, as well as to neighboring regions such as Austria and parts of Eastern Europe. A notable bearer of the name from this period was the German botanist Johann Jakob Dillenius (1687-1747), who made significant contributions to the study of mosses and ferns.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name became more widespread across Europe, with bearers found in countries like France, Switzerland, and Poland. One famous bearer from this time was the German composer Johann Friedrich Dillermann (1739-1809), who composed operas and other works.

In the 19th century, the name began to appear in North America, as German immigrants brought the name with them to the United States and Canada. One notable American bearer was the businessman and philanthropist Clarence Diller (1840-1901), who made his fortune in the lumber industry and founded Diller College in Pennsylvania.

Other notable bearers of the Diller surname throughout history include the German painter Hans Diller (1599-1647), the Swiss painter Johann Jakob Diller (1784-1862), and the Austrian philosopher and writer Theodor Diller (1877-1954).

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Diller

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

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

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

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