2000
#2,792
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 11,836
First available Census row
Per 100,000 4.39
Uncommon Last name
Dinh
A Vietnamese surname derived from the Chinese surname 丁, meaning "nail" or referring to the fourth celestial stem.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,914 Americans carry the last name Dinh. That puts it at #1,687 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,333 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dinh 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 Dinh with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,333
Census rank
#1,687
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,854 bearers of the surname Dinh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1687th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dinh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.9%) and White (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dinh
The surname DINH originated in Vietnam and dates back to the 10th century AD. It is derived from the Vietnamese word "dinh" meaning a communal house or village meeting hall, suggesting the name may have referred to someone who lived near or was associated with such a structure.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname DINH can be found in the writings of the Vietnamese historian Le Van Huu from the 15th century. He mentions several individuals with this surname serving as officials and scholars during the Ly and Tran dynasties between the 11th-13th centuries.
The DINH surname was also present in the village annotation books kept by local officials during the Le Dynasty (1428-1788). These records listed households and their members for tax and conscription purposes, giving examples of the name's widespread use across various regions of Vietnam.
A notable early bearer of the DINH name was DINH Bo Linh (965-979), the founder and first emperor of the short-lived Early Le Dynasty in what is now northern Vietnam. He helped free the country from Chinese domination before his assassination.
Another influential figure was the 13th century military strategist DINH Liet, who played a key role in the Tran Dynasty's victories over the invading Mongol forces of Kublai Khan in the late 1200s.
In more recent history, DINH Xuan Hieu (1892-1948) was a celebrated Vietnamese poet and writer known for his romantic poetry and advocacy of the Nom script during the French colonial era.
Other examples include DINH Van Den (1924-1997), a Vietnamese diplomat who served as ambassador to the Soviet Union, and DINH Thi Hoa (1925-2003), an actress renowned for roles in Vietnamese revolutionary films and operas during the 1950s-60s.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dinh
Among Census respondents with the surname Dinh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.9%) and White (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Dinh 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 Dinh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Asian and Pacific Islander95.7% · 19,953
- Two or more races1.9% · 401
- White1.4% · 291
- Hispanic or Latino0.8% · 163
- Black or African American0.2% · 42
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dinh
Dinh 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
#2,119
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 17,081
+5,245 bearers (+44.3%)
Per 100,000 5.79
Rank movement Up 673 places
2020
#1,687
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,854
+3,773 bearers (+22.1%)
Per 100,000 6.98
Rank movement Up 432 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,792 | 11,836 | 4.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,119 | 17,081 | 5.79 | +5,245 bearers (+44.3%) | Up 673 places |
| 2020 | #1,687 | 20,854 | 6.98 | +3,773 bearers (+22.1%) | Up 432 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 Dinh 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 | #2,119 | #1,687 | 20.4% |
| Count | 17,081 | 20,854 | 22.1% |
| Per 100K | 5.79 | 6.98 | 20.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dinh bearers went from 17,081 to 20,854 (+22.1% change). The surname moved up 432 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,119 to #1,687.
FAQ
Dinh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dinh?
Name Census estimates that about 23,914 living Americans carry the surname Dinh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,333 residents.
How common is Dinh?
Dinh ranks #1,687 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.98 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,854 people with the surname Dinh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,914), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.98 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Dinh.
Has Dinh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dinh went from 17,081 recorded bearers to 20,854. That is an increase of 3,773 (+22.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #2,119 to #1,687.
What does the Census say about the background of Dinh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dinh, the largest self-reported group is Asian/Pacific Islander at 95.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.9%) and White (1.4%). 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?
Asian/Pacific Islander is the largest self-reported group for the surname Dinh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.7% (19,953 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dinh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Asian/Pacific Islander (95.7%), Two or More Races (1.9%), White (1.4%). 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 Dinh (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 Dinh mean?
A Vietnamese surname derived from the Chinese surname 丁, meaning "nail" or referring to the fourth celestial stem. 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 Dinh (6.98 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 have the last name Dinh?
Find out how many people are called Dinh on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.