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

Dozier, 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 Dozier surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dozier in America

Dozier is the 2259th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dozier surname appeared 16,091 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 5 people would have the surname Dozier.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dozier 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 Dozier

The surname Dozier has its origins in France, where it emerged during the medieval period. It is derived from the Old French word "doser," which means "to divide or distribute." The name likely referred to someone whose occupation involved the distribution or apportionment of goods or resources.

Dozier is believed to have first appeared in records during the 12th century, with early variations of the spelling including Dossier, Dosier, and Douzier. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Cartulaire de l'Abbaye de Redon, a medieval French manuscript dating back to the 12th century.

In the 13th century, the name Dozier was associated with the village of Dozier-sur-Dordogne in the Périgord region of southwestern France. This village likely took its name from a local landowner or nobleman bearing the surname Dozier.

During the Middle Ages, several notable individuals carried the surname Dozier. Among them was Jean Dozier, a renowned French jurist and legal scholar who lived in the 14th century. Another notable figure was Étienne Dozier, a French soldier and diplomat who served under King Charles VI in the late 14th century.

As the centuries passed, the Dozier name spread beyond France to other parts of Europe and eventually to the Americas. In England, the name appeared in various spellings, such as Dosser and Dossor, and can be traced back to the 16th century.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the Dozier name in America dates back to the late 17th century, when Antoine Dozier, a French Huguenot, settled in South Carolina after fleeing religious persecution in France.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Dozier. These include:

1. Henry Dozier, an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Louisiana in the early 19th century.
2. James Dozier, an American general who was kidnapped by the Red Brigades terrorist group in Italy in 1981 and held captive for 42 days before being rescued.
3. Melville Dozier, an American football player and coach who played for the University of Michigan in the early 20th century.
4. Robert Dozier, an American basketball player who played in the NBA and various international leagues in the 2000s and 2010s.
5. Wilma Dozier, an American civil rights activist and one of the founding members of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE) in the 1940s.

While the surname Dozier has its roots in medieval France, it has since become a part of the cultural and historical fabric of various nations, reflecting the migration and dispersal of families over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dozier

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

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

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

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