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

Dirk, 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 Dirk surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dirk in America

Dirk is the 40016th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dirk surname appeared 548 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Dirk.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dirk 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 Dirk

The surname DIRK originates from the Netherlands and is a Dutch name. It derives from the medieval diminutive form "Dirc" or "Dierc" of the Germanic personal name "Theodoric" which means "ruler of the people" or "powerful among the people."

DIRK was first recorded as a surname in the Netherlands in the early 13th century. It is believed to have been adopted as a surname by the descendants of someone named Dirk. The name appeared in various old Dutch records and manuscripts from this time period.

One of the earliest known bearers of the surname was Dirk van Hoogstraten, a knight who lived in the 13th century in the town of Hoogstraten, located in the modern-day Belgian province of Antwerp. His name was recorded in a charter dated 1238.

Another early recording of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript record of landholders in England in 1086, where it appears as "Derric" and "Deric."

Dirk Hartog (1580-1638) was a Dutch sailor and explorer who is famous for being the first European known to have landed in Australia. In 1616, he landed on an island off the Western Australian coast, which he named "Dirk Hartog Island."

Dirk Willems (c. 1577-1569) was a Dutch Anabaptist who is known for his act of compassion towards his pursuer, which ultimately led to his execution. His story is widely celebrated among Mennonites and Amish communities.

Dirk Coster (c. 1590-1642) was a Dutch inventor and printer who is sometimes credited with the invention of movable type printing in Europe before Johannes Gutenberg.

Dirk Kuyt (born 1980) is a former Dutch professional footballer who played as a striker for teams like Liverpool and Feyenoord.

Dirk Nowitzki (born 1978) is a German professional basketball player who played for the Dallas Mavericks in the NBA and is considered one of the greatest European players in NBA history.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dirk

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

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

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

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