2000
#11,295
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,567
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.95
Rare Last name
Duerr
A German occupational surname referring to a maker of doors or gates, or a doorkeeper or gatekeeper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,799 Americans carry the last name Duerr. That puts it at #12,182 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.82 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 122,456 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Duerr 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 122,456
Census rank
#12,182
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,441 bearers of the surname Duerr in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.82 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12182nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Duerr, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Duerr
The surname Duerr has its origins in Germany, with records dating back to the 12th century. It is believed to have originated from the German word "dürr," which means "dry" or "barren." This suggests that the name may have been a descriptive nickname given to someone living in a dry or arid region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, where a man named Heinrich Dürr was mentioned in a document from 1285. The name also appears in various other medieval records from different regions of Germany, sometimes with slight variations in spelling, such as Durr or Dörr.
In the 16th century, the Duerr name gained prominence in the city of Nürnberg, where a family of goldsmiths and metalworkers bearing this surname established themselves. One notable member of this family was Hans Duerr (1490-1554), a renowned goldsmith and engraver who created intricate works of art for prominent patrons.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Duerr name spread across various regions of Germany, with some families settling in areas like Saxony and Bavaria. One notable figure from this period was Johann Georg Dürr (1638-1702), a Lutheran theologian and writer who authored several religious texts.
As the name spread, it also found its way into other parts of Europe, including Switzerland and Austria. In the 19th century, some individuals bearing the Duerr surname immigrated to the United States and other parts of the New World, seeking new opportunities.
Other notable individuals with the Duerr surname include:
1. Friedrich Dürr (1809-1891), a German landscape painter known for his depictions of the Black Forest region.
2. Wilhelm Dürr (1859-1946), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Karlsruhe.
3. Anna Duerr (1877-1964), an American artist and educator who was a prominent figure in the Arts and Crafts movement.
4. Alfred Dürr (1920-2011), a German engineer and entrepreneur who founded the Dürr Group, a leading supplier of painting and assembly systems for the automotive industry.
5. Renate Dürr (born 1951), a German politician and member of the Bundestag, representing the Social Democratic Party of Germany.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Duerr
Among Census respondents with the surname Duerr, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Duerr 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 Duerr surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 2,268
- Two or more races3.7% · 90
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 52
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 24
- Black or African American0.2% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Duerr
Duerr 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
#11,982
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,607
+40 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.88
Rank movement Down 687 places
2020
#12,182
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,441
-166 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 0.82
Rank movement Down 200 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,295 | 2,567 | 0.95 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,982 | 2,607 | 0.88 | +40 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 687 places |
| 2020 | #12,182 | 2,441 | 0.82 | -166 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 200 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 Duerr 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 | #11,982 | #12,182 | -1.7% |
| Count | 2,607 | 2,441 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.88 | 0.82 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Duerr bearers went from 2,607 to 2,441 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 200 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,982 to #12,182.
FAQ
Duerr surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Duerr?
Name Census estimates that about 2,799 living Americans carry the surname Duerr. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 122,456 residents.
How common is Duerr?
Duerr ranks #12,182 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 2,441 people with the surname Duerr. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,799), 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 Duerr.
Has Duerr become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Duerr went from 2,607 recorded bearers to 2,441. That is a decrease of 166 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,982 to #12,182.
What does the Census say about the background of Duerr?
Among Census respondents with the surname Duerr, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.1%). 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 Duerr in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (2,268 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Duerr appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (2.1%). 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 Duerr (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 Duerr mean?
A German occupational surname referring to a maker of doors or gates, or a doorkeeper or gatekeeper. 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 Duerr (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 share the surname Duerr?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.