2000
#11,399
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,535
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.94
Rare Last name
Drost
A Dutch and Low German occupational surname referring to a bailiff or steward.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,796 Americans carry the last name Drost. That puts it at #12,194 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 122,587 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Drost 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
2.8K
1 in 122,587
Census rank
#12,194
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,438 bearers of the surname Drost in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12194th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Drost, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Drost
The surname DROST is of Dutch and German origin, derived from the Middle Dutch and Middle Low German word "drost," meaning a feudal officer, steward, or bailiff. It emerged in the 13th century across the Rhine region, encompassing parts of modern-day Germany, the Netherlands, and Belgium.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname can be traced back to the 14th century in various official records and manuscripts from the region. One notable example is the appearance of the name in the Eltenberg Lehnbuch (Eltenberg Feudal Book) of 1370, which documented land ownership and feudal duties in the region.
In the 15th century, the surname gained prominence with the rise of the Drost family, who held significant positions of power and influence in the city of Münster, Germany. Johannes Drost (1456-1524), a prominent merchant and alderman, was one of the most notable figures of this era.
The name also appeared in various Dutch and German literary works, including the seminal 16th-century work "Reineke Fuchs" by Heinrich von Alkmar, where the character of "Drost Reinhart" is a prominent figure.
As the name spread across Europe, it took on various spellings and regional variations, such as Drossart, Droste, and Drossaert. One of the most famous bearers of the name was the German poet and playwright, Annette von Droste-Hülshoff (1797-1848), who is considered a pioneer of German Romanticism.
Another notable figure was the Dutch painter, Gerard ter Borch (1617-1681), who was also known as Gerard Drost, and was renowned for his genre paintings depicting domestic scenes and portraits of the Dutch elite.
In the 18th century, the name gained prominence in the military realm with figures like Johann Heinrich Drost (1730-1799), a Prussian general who served in the Seven Years' War and the Napoleonic Wars.
While the surname is most commonly associated with Dutch and German ancestry, it has also been found in other European countries, such as Belgium and Switzerland, due to migration and intermarriage over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Drost
Among Census respondents with the surname Drost, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Drost 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 Drost surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.2% · 2,247
- Two or more races3.4% · 83
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 70
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 20
- Black or African American0.4% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Drost
Drost 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
#11,355
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,778
+243 bearers (+9.6%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 44 places
2020
#12,194
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,438
-340 bearers (-12.2%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 839 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,399 | 2,535 | 0.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,355 | 2,778 | 0.94 | +243 bearers (+9.6%) | Up 44 places |
| 2020 | #12,194 | 2,438 | 0.82 | -340 bearers (-12.2%) | Down 839 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 Drost 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 | #11,355 | #12,194 | -7.4% |
| Count | 2,778 | 2,438 | -12.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.82 | -13.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Drost bearers went from 2,778 to 2,438 (-12.2% change). The surname moved down 839 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,355 to #12,194.
FAQ
Drost surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Drost?
Name Census estimates that about 2,796 living Americans carry the surname Drost. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 122,587 residents.
How common is Drost?
Drost ranks #12,194 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.82 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,438 people with the surname Drost. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,796), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.82 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.82 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Drost.
Has Drost become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Drost went from 2,778 recorded bearers to 2,438. That is a decrease of 340 (-12.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,355 to #12,194.
What does the Census say about the background of Drost?
Among Census respondents with the surname Drost, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.2%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Drost in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.2% (2,247 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Drost appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.2%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Drost (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 Drost mean?
A Dutch and Low German occupational surname referring to a bailiff or steward. 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 Drost (0.82 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 Drost?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.