2000
#51,945
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 376
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Dittemore
A locational surname derived from a place name, potentially meaning "of the moor stream".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 421 Americans carry the last name Dittemore. That puts it at #59,512 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 814,143 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dittemore 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
421
1 in 814,143
Census rank
#59,512
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
367
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 367 bearers of the surname Dittemore in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 59512th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dittemore, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dittemore
The surname Dittemore is believed to have originated in England during the late medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "ditt" or "dittian," meaning to close or stop up, and "mor," referring to a moor or marsh. This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive one, potentially referring to someone who lived near or worked on a marshy area that had been dammed or enclosed.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a Thomas Dyttemer is listed. The spelling variations during this time included Dittemer, Dyttemer, and Dyttemore, reflecting the fluidity of surname spellings in the Middle Ages.
In the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1379, a John Dyttemore is mentioned, providing further evidence of the name's presence in various regions of England during the 14th century. The Dittemore surname also appears in the Hearth Tax Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1665, with a Robert Dittemore recorded as a taxpayer.
While the name does not seem to have been particularly widespread, there are notable individuals throughout history who bore the Dittemore surname. One such figure was William Dittemore (c. 1530-1598), an English clergyman who served as the Archdeacon of Totnes in Devon from 1592 until his death.
Another individual of note was John Dittemore (1694-1767), a prominent merchant and landowner from Warwickshire. He was involved in the wool trade and acquired significant wealth, allowing him to purchase several estates in the region.
In the 19th century, Henry Dittemore (1822-1901) made a name for himself as a successful businessman and industrialist in the United States. Originally from England, he emigrated to Illinois and established a thriving manufacturing company that produced agricultural implements.
William Dittemore (1859-1935), born in Ohio, was a respected scholar and educator who served as the president of Franklin College in Indiana from 1904 to 1924. Under his leadership, the college experienced significant growth and development.
One of the more recent historical figures with the Dittemore surname was Elizabeth Dittemore (1901-1989), an American painter and artist known for her vibrant landscapes and still-life works. Her paintings were exhibited in galleries across the United States and are held in several museum collections.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dittemore
Among Census respondents with the surname Dittemore, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Dittemore 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 Dittemore surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 327
- Two or more races6.0% · 22
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dittemore
Dittemore 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
#53,419
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 387
+11 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.13
Rank movement Down 1,474 places
2020
#59,512
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 367
-20 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 6,093 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #51,945 | 376 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #53,419 | 387 | 0.13 | +11 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 1,474 places |
| 2020 | #59,512 | 367 | 0.12 | -20 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 6,093 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 Dittemore 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 | #53,419 | #59,512 | -11.4% |
| Count | 387 | 367 | -5.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.13 | 0.12 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dittemore bearers went from 387 to 367 (-5.2% change). The surname moved down 6,093 positions in the national ranking, going from #53,419 to #59,512.
FAQ
Dittemore surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dittemore?
Name Census estimates that about 421 living Americans carry the surname Dittemore. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 814,143 residents.
How common is Dittemore?
Dittemore ranks #59,512 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.12 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 367 people with the surname Dittemore. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (421), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.12 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Dittemore.
Has Dittemore become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dittemore went from 387 recorded bearers to 367. That is a decrease of 20 (-5.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #53,419 to #59,512.
What does the Census say about the background of Dittemore?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dittemore, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (6.0%) and Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Dittemore in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (327 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dittemore appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Two or More Races (6.0%), Hispanic (3.5%). 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 Dittemore (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 Dittemore mean?
A locational surname derived from a place name, potentially meaning "of the moor stream". 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 Dittemore (0.12 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 Dittemore?
Want to know how many people are called Dittemore? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.