2000
#912
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 34,770
First available Census row
Per 100,000 12.89
Uncommon Last name
Dudley
From a place name meaning "Dudda's meadow," referring to a clearing or pasture owned by someone named Dudda.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 39,346 Americans carry the last name Dudley. That puts it at #999 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 11.48 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 8,711 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dudley 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 Dudley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
39K
1 in 8,711
Census rank
#999
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
11.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
34K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 34,312 bearers of the surname Dudley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 11.48 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 999th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dudley, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (26.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dudley
The surname Dudley originated in England during the Anglo-Saxon period. It is a habitational name, derived from the place name Dudley, which comes from the Old English words 'dud' meaning 'hill' and 'leah' meaning 'a clearing in a wood'.
The Domesday Book of 1086 records a place called 'Duddelei' in Worcestershire, which is believed to be the earliest recorded form of the name. This suggests that the Dudley surname was already in use by this time.
One of the earliest recorded bearers of the Dudley surname was Roger de Dudley, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Staffordshire in 1199. The Pipe Rolls were financial records kept by the English Crown.
The Dudley family rose to prominence in the late Middle Ages. John Dudley, 1st Duke of Northumberland (c.1504-1553), was a prominent figure during the reign of Edward VI and was executed for his involvement in the attempt to place Lady Jane Grey on the throne.
Another notable Dudley was Robert Dudley, 1st Earl of Leicester (1532-1588), a favorite of Queen Elizabeth I. He was a renowned courtier, diplomat, and military commander, and was rumored to be a potential suitor for the Queen.
Sir Christopher Dudley (1532-1597) was a notable explorer and navigator. He was the first Englishman to lead an expedition in search of the Northwest Passage in 1576-1578.
The name Dudley has also been associated with several place names in England, such as Dudley Castle, a medieval castle located in the town of Dudley in the West Midlands.
Other notable historical figures with the surname Dudley include Sir Robert Dudley (1573-1649), a mathematician and navigator who established the first British colony in the Caribbean, and Dud Dudley (1599-1684), an English metallurgist and entrepreneur who pioneered the use of coal in the smelting of iron.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dudley
Among Census respondents with the surname Dudley, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (26.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Dudley 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 Dudley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White63.8% · 21,899
- Black or African American26.6% · 9,139
- Two or more races4.6% · 1,567
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 1,262
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 229
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 216
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dudley
Dudley 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
#972
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 35,781
+1,011 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 12.13
Rank movement Down 60 places
2020
#999
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 34,312
-1,469 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 11.48
Rank movement Down 27 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #912 | 34,770 | 12.89 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #972 | 35,781 | 12.13 | +1,011 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 60 places |
| 2020 | #999 | 34,312 | 11.48 | -1,469 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 27 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 Dudley 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 | #972 | #999 | -2.8% |
| Count | 35,781 | 34,312 | -4.1% |
| Per 100K | 12.13 | 11.48 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dudley bearers went from 35,781 to 34,312 (-4.1% change). The surname moved down 27 positions in the national ranking, going from #972 to #999.
FAQ
Dudley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dudley?
Name Census estimates that about 39,346 living Americans carry the surname Dudley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 8,711 residents.
How common is Dudley?
Dudley ranks #999 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 11.48 per 100,000 residents, which is about 11 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 34,312 people with the surname Dudley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (39,346), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 11.48 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 11.48 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 11 of them to have the surname Dudley.
Has Dudley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dudley went from 35,781 recorded bearers to 34,312. That is a decrease of 1,469 (-4.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #972 to #999.
What does the Census say about the background of Dudley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dudley, the largest self-reported group is White at 63.8%. The next largest groups are Black (26.6%) and Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Dudley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 63.8% (21,899 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dudley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (63.8%), Black (26.6%), Two or More Races (4.6%). 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 Dudley (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 Dudley mean?
From a place name meaning "Dudda's meadow," referring to a clearing or pasture owned by someone named Dudda. 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 Dudley (11.48 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 Dudley?
If you just want to know how many people have the surname Dudley, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.