2000
#5,068
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,350
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.35
Rare Last name
Doane
Derived from the Old English words "dun" (hill) and "tun" (enclosure or settlement), referring to someone who lived in a hill town.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,837 Americans carry the last name Doane. That puts it at #5,621 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.99 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 50,132 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Doane 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 Doane with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.8K
1 in 50,132
Census rank
#5,621
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,962 bearers of the surname Doane in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.99 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5621st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Doane, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Doane
The surname Doane originated in England. It is derived from the Old English words 'dun' meaning a hill and 'holm' meaning a flat land near hills. The name initially referred to someone who lived near a hill or a flat area near hills.
The surname can be traced back to the 12th century in various records from different parts of England. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1195, where it is spelled as 'de Dun'. The Doane family was prominent in Yorkshire during the Middle Ages.
In the 13th century, the name is found in various historical records with different spellings such as 'Dun', 'Dune', and 'Doune'. The Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 mention a William Dun in Oxfordshire.
The surname is also found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which was a record of landowners in England commissioned by William the Conqueror. The name appears as 'de Duna' in this important historical document.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Sir John Doane, who was born in Yorkshire in 1298. He was a knight and served under King Edward III during the Hundred Years' War.
Another notable figure was William Doane, a wealthy merchant from London who lived in the late 16th century. He was involved in the cloth trade and was a member of the Worshipful Company of Clothworkers.
In the 17th century, the name was also found in various places in England, including the village of Doane in Derbyshire, which is believed to have derived its name from the surname.
During the Colonial era, several Doane families migrated to the American colonies. One of the earliest recorded Doanes in America was John Doane, who was born in England in 1590 and settled in Plymouth Colony in 1630.
Another significant figure was Deacon John Doane, who was born in England in 1629 and was one of the early settlers of Eastham, Massachusetts. He played an important role in the establishment of the town and served as a deacon in the local church.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Doane
Among Census respondents with the surname Doane, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Doane 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 Doane surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.9% · 5,360
- Two or more races4.6% · 274
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 139
- Black or African American1.6% · 98
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 15
Timeline
Historical Census data for Doane
Doane 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
#5,356
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,501
+151 bearers (+2.4%)
Per 100,000 2.20
Rank movement Down 288 places
2020
#5,621
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,962
-539 bearers (-8.3%)
Per 100,000 1.99
Rank movement Down 265 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,068 | 6,350 | 2.35 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,356 | 6,501 | 2.20 | +151 bearers (+2.4%) | Down 288 places |
| 2020 | #5,621 | 5,962 | 1.99 | -539 bearers (-8.3%) | Down 265 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 Doane 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 | #5,356 | #5,621 | -4.9% |
| Count | 6,501 | 5,962 | -8.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.20 | 1.99 | -9.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Doane bearers went from 6,501 to 5,962 (-8.3% change). The surname moved down 265 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,356 to #5,621.
FAQ
Doane surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Doane?
Name Census estimates that about 6,837 living Americans carry the surname Doane. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 50,132 residents.
How common is Doane?
Doane ranks #5,621 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.99 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 5,962 people with the surname Doane. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,837), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.99 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.99 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 Doane.
Has Doane become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Doane went from 6,501 recorded bearers to 5,962. That is a decrease of 539 (-8.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,356 to #5,621.
What does the Census say about the background of Doane?
Among Census respondents with the surname Doane, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.6%) and Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Doane in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.9% (5,360 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Doane appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.9%), Two or More Races (4.6%), Hispanic (2.3%). 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 Doane (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 Doane mean?
Derived from the Old English words "dun" (hill) and "tun" (enclosure or settlement), referring to someone who lived in a hill town. 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 Doane (1.99 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 common is the surname Doane?
See how many people have the surname Doane on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.