2000
#130,443
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Dorsheimer
A habitational surname derived from a place name in Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Dorsheimer. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dorsheimer 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Dorsheimer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dorsheimer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dorsheimer
The surname Dorsheimer is of German origin, originating in the region of Bavaria in the southern part of the country. The name is believed to have derived from the old German words "dors" meaning "village" and "heim" meaning "home," suggesting that the name may have initially referred to someone who hailed from a particular village.
The earliest known records of the name Dorsheimer date back to the late 16th century. One of the earliest documented individuals with this surname was Hans Dorsheimer, a farmer who lived in the village of Oberammergau in Bavaria in the late 1500s.
In the 17th century, the name appears in various church records and tax rolls in the Bavarian region. One notable bearer of the name during this time was Johann Dorsheimer, a blacksmith who lived in the town of Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the early 1600s.
As the Dorsheimer family spread across Germany and into neighboring regions, the name underwent some variations in spelling, including Dorsheimer, Dorfheimer, and Dorfsheimer. These variations likely reflected regional dialects and differences in record-keeping practices.
In the 18th century, the Dorsheimer name became more widespread. One of the most prominent individuals with this surname was Friedrich Dorsheimer, a scholar and professor of philosophy at the University of Göttingen in the mid-1700s.
Another notable bearer of the name was Johann Georg Dorsheimer, a renowned clockmaker from the town of Schwabach in Bavaria, who lived from 1753 to 1821 and was renowned for his intricate and precise timepieces.
As the 19th century dawned, the Dorsheimer name began to appear in records beyond Germany. One example is Wilhelm Dorsheimer, a German-American engineer and inventor who lived from 1832 to 1888 and was granted several patents for his innovations in the field of steam engines and machinery.
Throughout the 20th century, the Dorsheimer name continued to be found in various parts of the world, with individuals from this family making contributions in various fields, including academia, business, and the arts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dorsheimer
Among Census respondents with the surname Dorsheimer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Dorsheimer 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 Dorsheimer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 102
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dorsheimer
Dorsheimer 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
#142,108
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
-3 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 11,665 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-6 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,557 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #130,443 | 120 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #142,108 | 117 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.5%) | Down 11,665 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -6 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 6,557 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 Dorsheimer 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 | #142,108 | #148,665 | -4.6% |
| Count | 117 | 111 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dorsheimer bearers went from 117 to 111 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 6,557 positions in the national ranking, going from #142,108 to #148,665.
FAQ
Dorsheimer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dorsheimer?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Dorsheimer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Dorsheimer?
Dorsheimer ranks #148,665 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 111 people with the surname Dorsheimer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Dorsheimer.
Has Dorsheimer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dorsheimer went from 117 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #142,108 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Dorsheimer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dorsheimer, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Dorsheimer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dorsheimer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (4.5%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Dorsheimer (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 Dorsheimer mean?
A habitational surname derived from a place name in Germany. 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 Dorsheimer (0.04 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 surname Dorsheimer?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.