2000
#7,053
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,374
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.62
Rare Last name
Dirks
Derived from the German given name "Diederik," meaning "ruler of the people," or from "dirk," a type of dagger.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,165 Americans carry the last name Dirks. That puts it at #7,147 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 66,361 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dirks 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
5.2K
1 in 66,361
Census rank
#7,147
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,504 bearers of the surname Dirks in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7147th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dirks, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dirks
The surname Dirks is of Dutch origin, with its roots dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Dutch personal name Dirk, which is a variant of the Germanic name Theodoric or Dietrich. The name Dirk itself is thought to have come from the elements "diet" meaning "people" and "ric" meaning "ruler" or "powerful."
The earliest known record of the surname Dirks can be found in the Dutch province of Friesland, where it was used to distinguish individuals from the same village or region. In those times, surnames were often derived from personal names, occupations, or geographical locations.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Dirks is in a 1587 document from the city of Leeuwarden, which mentions a man named Jan Dirks. This suggests that the surname was already in use by the late 16th century in the Netherlands.
In the 17th century, the surname Dirks began to appear in various records and manuscripts across the Dutch Republic. For instance, a merchant named Pieter Dirks is mentioned in the records of the Dutch East India Company (VOC) in 1624.
As the Dutch Empire expanded, the surname Dirks spread to other parts of the world, including the Dutch colonies in South Africa and the Dutch West Indies. One notable figure with this surname was Dirk Dirks, a Dutch settler who arrived in South Africa in 1687 and became a prominent farmer and landowner in the Cape Colony.
Another notable individual with the surname Dirks was Abraham Dirks, a Dutch Golden Age painter who lived from around 1650 to 1719. Dirks was known for his genre scenes depicting everyday life in the Netherlands.
In the 19th century, the surname Dirks was further dispersed through emigration, with many Dutch families carrying the name settling in countries like the United States, Canada, and Australia. One such individual was Jacob Dirks, a Dutch immigrant who arrived in the United States in 1845 and later became a successful businessman in Wisconsin.
Other notable individuals with the surname Dirks include Walter Dirks (1901-1991), a German-American author and journalist, and Rudolph Dirks (1877-1968), an American cartoonist and the creator of the popular comic strip "The Katzenjammer Kids."
While the surname Dirks may have evolved over time, its Dutch origins and historical significance remain intact, serving as a testament to the rich cultural heritage and migration patterns of the Netherlands.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dirks
Among Census respondents with the surname Dirks, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Dirks 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 Dirks surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 4,027
- Black or African American3.1% · 140
- Two or more races2.8% · 126
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 110
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 46
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dirks
Dirks 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
#7,350
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,534
+160 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 1.54
Rank movement Down 297 places
2020
#7,147
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,504
-30 bearers (-0.7%)
Per 100,000 1.51
Rank movement Up 203 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,053 | 4,374 | 1.62 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,350 | 4,534 | 1.54 | +160 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 297 places |
| 2020 | #7,147 | 4,504 | 1.51 | -30 bearers (-0.7%) | Up 203 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 Dirks 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 | #7,350 | #7,147 | 2.8% |
| Count | 4,534 | 4,504 | -0.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.54 | 1.51 | -2.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dirks bearers went from 4,534 to 4,504 (-0.7% change). The surname moved up 203 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,350 to #7,147.
FAQ
Dirks surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dirks?
Name Census estimates that about 5,165 living Americans carry the surname Dirks. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 66,361 residents.
How common is Dirks?
Dirks ranks #7,147 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.51 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,504 people with the surname Dirks. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,165), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.51 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Dirks.
Has Dirks become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dirks went from 4,534 recorded bearers to 4,504. That is a decrease of 30 (-0.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,350 to #7,147.
What does the Census say about the background of Dirks?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dirks, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Black (3.1%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Dirks in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (4,027 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dirks appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Black (3.1%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Dirks (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 Dirks mean?
Derived from the German given name "Diederik," meaning "ruler of the people," or from "dirk," a type of dagger. 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 Dirks (1.51 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 Dirks?
For a quick modern take, check how many people have the last name Dirks on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.