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

Dixon, 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 Dixon surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dixon in America

Dixon is the 167th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dixon surname appeared 159,480 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 54 people would have the surname Dixon.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dixon 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 Dixon

The surname Dixon has its origins in England, emerging in the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old English words "dic" meaning a dike or ditch, and "sunu" meaning son. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a ditch or was the son of a ditch digger.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dixon can be found in the Hundred Rolls of 1273, where it is listed as "Dyckesone." This spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time. The Domesday Book of 1086 does not include the surname Dixon, as hereditary surnames were not widely adopted until after the Norman Conquest.

In the 13th century, the name Dixon was primarily concentrated in the northern counties of England, particularly Yorkshire and Lancashire. This is likely due to the prevalence of ditch-digging and land drainage in these areas, which were essential for agriculture and settlement.

Notable historical figures bearing the surname Dixon include:

1. William Dixon (1753-1828), a British navigator and explorer who accompanied Captain James Cook on his third voyage to the Pacific Ocean.
2. Jeremiah Dixon (1733-1779), an English surveyor and astronomer who, along with Charles Mason, established the Mason-Dixon line that demarcated the boundary between Pennsylvania and Maryland.
3. Richard Watson Dixon (1833-1900), an English poet and church historian who served as Canon of Ripon Cathedral.
4. Hepworth Dixon (1821-1879), an English writer and historian best known for his biographies of notable figures such as William Penn and Lord Bacon.
5. Thomas Dixon Jr. (1864-1946), an American Baptist minister, playwright, and politician who wrote the controversial novel "The Clansman," which served as inspiration for the film "The Birth of a Nation."

The surname Dixon has also been associated with various place names in England, such as Dixonfield in Yorkshire and Dixon's Green in Lancashire. These place names likely originated from the presence of individuals bearing the Dixon surname in those areas.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dixon

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

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

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

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