2000
#40,833
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 504
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Dohmen
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning "judge" or "leader."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 649 Americans carry the last name Dohmen. That puts it at #41,459 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 528,127 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dohmen 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
649
1 in 528,127
Census rank
#41,459
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
566
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 566 bearers of the surname Dohmen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 41459th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dohmen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dohmen
The surname DOHMEN originated in Germany during the 13th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "dohm" meaning "cathedral" or "dome". This name was likely given to those who lived near or worked at a cathedral or church with a prominent dome.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name DOHMEN can be found in a 1287 manuscript from the town of Cologne, which mentions a "Johannes Dohmen" as a church servant. This suggests the name may have first appeared in the Rhineland region of western Germany.
By the 14th century, variations of the name like "Dohmann" and "Dohmen" started appearing in records across Germany, particularly in areas around cities with notable cathedrals such as Cologne, Mainz, and Speyer. The name DOHMEN itself is thought to have originated from the Westphalian region in northwestern Germany.
In the 15th century, a notable bearer of the name was Hans Dohmen (c. 1420-1485), a master stonemason who worked on the construction of the famous Cologne Cathedral. His son, Johann Dohmen (1460-1523), also followed in his footsteps as a skilled architect.
Another historically significant figure was Peter Dohmen (1694-1772), a renowned German organ builder from the town of Schmallenberg. He was responsible for constructing numerous church organs across western Germany during the 18th century.
In the 19th century, the name DOHMEN spread further afield as German immigrants settled in other parts of Europe and North America. One prominent individual was Friedrich Dohmen (1835-1912), a German-American educator who served as the first president of the Milwaukee Normal School, which later became the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee.
Other notable bearers of the surname DOHMEN include the Dutch artist Theodoor Dohmen (1863-1919), known for his impressionist paintings, and the German composer Max Dohmen (1869-1939), who wrote several operas and vocal works in the early 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dohmen
Among Census respondents with the surname Dohmen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) and Hispanic (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dohmen 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 Dohmen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 523
- Two or more races3.5% · 20
- Hispanic or Latino2.3% · 13
- Black or African American1.1% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dohmen
Dohmen 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
#39,281
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 560
+56 bearers (+11.1%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Up 1,552 places
2020
#41,459
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 566
+6 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Down 2,178 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #40,833 | 504 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #39,281 | 560 | 0.19 | +56 bearers (+11.1%) | Up 1,552 places |
| 2020 | #41,459 | 566 | 0.19 | +6 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 2,178 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 Dohmen 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 | #39,281 | #41,459 | -5.5% |
| Count | 560 | 566 | 1.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.19 | 0.19 | -0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dohmen bearers went from 560 to 566 (+1.1% change). The surname moved down 2,178 positions in the national ranking, going from #39,281 to #41,459.
FAQ
Dohmen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dohmen?
Name Census estimates that about 649 living Americans carry the surname Dohmen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 528,127 residents.
How common is Dohmen?
Dohmen ranks #41,459 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.19 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 566 people with the surname Dohmen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (649), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.19 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 Dohmen.
Has Dohmen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dohmen went from 560 recorded bearers to 566. That is an increase of 6 (+1.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #39,281 to #41,459.
What does the Census say about the background of Dohmen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dohmen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.5%) 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 Dohmen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (523 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dohmen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (3.5%), 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 Dohmen (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 Dohmen mean?
A surname derived from a Germanic personal name meaning "judge" or "leader." 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 Dohmen (0.19 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 are called Dohmen?
See how many people have the surname Dohmen on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.