2000
#8,092
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,774
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.40
Rare Last name
Diller
A surname of German origin referring to someone who made or played a musical instrument called a dill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,478 Americans carry the last name Diller. That puts it at #8,116 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.31 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 76,542 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Diller 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Diller with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.5K
1 in 76,542
Census rank
#8,116
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,905 bearers of the surname Diller in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.31 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8116th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Diller, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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).
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Diller
Among Census respondents with the surname Diller, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Diller 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 Diller surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 3,621
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 131
- Two or more races2.2% · 86
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 33
- Black or African American0.5% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Diller
Diller 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
#7,710
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,306
+532 bearers (+14.1%)
Per 100,000 1.46
Rank movement Up 382 places
2020
#8,116
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,905
-401 bearers (-9.3%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 406 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,092 | 3,774 | 1.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,710 | 4,306 | 1.46 | +532 bearers (+14.1%) | Up 382 places |
| 2020 | #8,116 | 3,905 | 1.31 | -401 bearers (-9.3%) | Down 406 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 Diller 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 | #7,710 | #8,116 | -5.3% |
| Count | 4,306 | 3,905 | -9.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.46 | 1.31 | -10.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Diller bearers went from 4,306 to 3,905 (-9.3% change). The surname moved down 406 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,710 to #8,116.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Diller
FAQ
Diller surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Diller?
Name Census estimates that about 4,478 living Americans carry the surname Diller. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 76,542 residents.
How common is Diller?
Diller ranks #8,116 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.31 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 3,905 people with the surname Diller. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,478), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.31 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.31 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 Diller.
Has Diller become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Diller went from 4,306 recorded bearers to 3,905. That is a decrease of 401 (-9.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,710 to #8,116.
What does the Census say about the background of Diller?
Among Census respondents with the surname Diller, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Diller in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (3,621 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Diller appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.2%). 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 Diller (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 Diller mean?
A surname of German origin referring to someone who made or played a musical instrument called a dill. 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 Diller (1.31 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 Americans have the surname Diller?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.