2000
#27,901
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 810
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.30
Very Rare Last name
Dumm
An originally German surname derived from the word "dumb" meaning stupid or dull.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 915 Americans carry the last name Dumm. That puts it at #31,148 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.27 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 374,595 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dumm 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
915
1 in 374,595
Census rank
#31,148
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
798
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 798 bearers of the surname Dumm in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.27 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 31148th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dumm, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dumm
The surname DUMM originated in Germany, with records of the name dating back to the 13th century. It likely derived from the Old High German word "tumb," meaning "dull" or "foolish." This word evolved into the modern German word "dumm," which carries a similar meaning.
One of the earliest known references to the name DUMM can be found in a manuscript from the Rhineland region of Germany, dated around 1290. The document mentions a person named "Heinricus Dummius," which is believed to be an early spelling variation of the surname.
In the 14th century, the name DUMM appeared in various records across different regions of Germany, including Bavaria and Saxony. One notable example is a land deed from 1352, which bears the signature of a "Johannes Dumm" from the town of Nuremberg.
The surname DUMM may also have originated as a descriptive nickname, referring to someone who was considered somewhat slow-witted or simple-minded. In those times, such nicknames were common and often became hereditary surnames.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname DUMM was Hans Dumm, a farmer from the village of Kirchheim, near Stuttgart, who was born around 1420. Another notable figure was Katharina Dumm, a midwife from the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, who lived in the late 15th century.
In the 16th century, the name DUMM appeared in records from various parts of Germany, including the Palatinate region and the city of Hamburg. One prominent individual was Christoph Dumm, a merchant and city councilor in Hamburg, who was born in 1532 and died in 1598.
Another significant figure was Johann Dumm, a Lutheran theologian and educator who lived from 1592 to 1662. He served as the headmaster of the prestigious Gymnasium Illustre in Gotha and was known for his scholarly works on theology and philosophy.
In the 18th century, the DUMM surname continued to be found across Germany, with notable individuals such as Georg Friedrich Dumm, a composer and organist from Leipzig, who lived from 1720 to 1784.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dumm
Among Census respondents with the surname Dumm, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dumm 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 Dumm surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 743
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 20
- Two or more races2.3% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 9
- Black or African American0.9% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dumm
Dumm 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
#28,100
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 852
+42 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.29
Rank movement Down 199 places
2020
#31,148
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 798
-54 bearers (-6.3%)
Per 100,000 0.27
Rank movement Down 3,048 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #27,901 | 810 | 0.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #28,100 | 852 | 0.29 | +42 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 199 places |
| 2020 | #31,148 | 798 | 0.27 | -54 bearers (-6.3%) | Down 3,048 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 Dumm 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 | #28,100 | #31,148 | -10.8% |
| Count | 852 | 798 | -6.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.29 | 0.27 | -7.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dumm bearers went from 852 to 798 (-6.3% change). The surname moved down 3,048 positions in the national ranking, going from #28,100 to #31,148.
FAQ
Dumm surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dumm?
Name Census estimates that about 915 living Americans carry the surname Dumm. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 374,595 residents.
How common is Dumm?
Dumm ranks #31,148 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.27 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 798 people with the surname Dumm. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (915), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.27 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.27 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 Dumm.
Has Dumm become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dumm went from 852 recorded bearers to 798. That is a decrease of 54 (-6.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #28,100 to #31,148.
What does the Census say about the background of Dumm?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dumm, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Dumm in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (743 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dumm appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (2.5%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Dumm (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 Dumm mean?
An originally German surname derived from the word "dumb" meaning stupid or dull. 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 Dumm (0.27 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 Dumm?
If you just want to know how many people are called Dumm, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.