2000
#55,609
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 345
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Dunst
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a dune or sandy hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 494 Americans carry the last name Dunst. That puts it at #52,071 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 693,835 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dunst 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
494
1 in 693,835
Census rank
#52,071
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
431
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 431 bearers of the surname Dunst in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 52071st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunst, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dunst
The surname DUNST has its origins in the German language and is believed to have first appeared in the 14th century in the region of Bavaria, Germany. The name is derived from the Middle High German word "tunst," which means "vapor" or "mist." It is thought to have been an occupational name given to those who worked in smoky or steamy environments, such as brewers or blacksmiths.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the town records of Augsburg, Bavaria, from the year 1395, where a person named Hans Dunst is mentioned. There are also references to the name in the records of the city of Nuremberg from the 15th century.
In the 16th century, the surname Dunst began to spread to other parts of Germany, as well as to neighboring regions such as Austria and Switzerland. During this time, variations of the name also started to appear, including Dunstl, Dunster, and Dünster.
One notable bearer of the name was Johann Dunst, a German mathematician and astronomer who lived from 1625 to 1701. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and is known for his work on calculating the orbits of comets.
Another prominent figure with the surname Dunst was Johann Georg Dunst, a 19th-century German composer and music teacher who was born in 1822 and died in 1894. He composed numerous works, including operas, symphonies, and chamber music.
In the Netherlands, the name Dunst can be traced back to the 17th century, where it is believed to have been introduced by German immigrants. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in the Netherlands is that of Pieter Dunst, a merchant who lived in Amsterdam in the late 1600s.
In the United States, the surname Dunst first appeared in the 18th century, likely brought by German and Dutch immigrants. One of the earliest known bearers of the name in America was Johann Dunst, who was born in Germany in 1745 and immigrated to Pennsylvania in the late 1700s.
Another notable American with the surname Dunst was Kirsten Dunst, the acclaimed actress who was born in 1982 in Point Pleasant, New Jersey. She is known for her roles in films such as "Interview with the Vampire," "Jumanji," and the "Spider-Man" trilogy.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dunst
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunst, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Dunst 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 Dunst surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 405
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 16
- Two or more races1.4% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 3
- Black or African American0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dunst
Dunst 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
#49,999
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 419
+74 bearers (+21.4%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Up 5,610 places
2020
#52,071
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 431
+12 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Down 2,072 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #55,609 | 345 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #49,999 | 419 | 0.14 | +74 bearers (+21.4%) | Up 5,610 places |
| 2020 | #52,071 | 431 | 0.14 | +12 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 2,072 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 Dunst 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 | #49,999 | #52,071 | -4.1% |
| Count | 419 | 431 | 2.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.14 | 0.14 | 3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dunst bearers went from 419 to 431 (+2.9% change). The surname moved down 2,072 positions in the national ranking, going from #49,999 to #52,071.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Dunst
FAQ
Dunst surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dunst?
Name Census estimates that about 494 living Americans carry the surname Dunst. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 693,835 residents.
How common is Dunst?
Dunst ranks #52,071 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.14 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 431 people with the surname Dunst. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (494), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.14 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 Dunst.
Has Dunst become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dunst went from 419 recorded bearers to 431. That is an increase of 12 (+2.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #49,999 to #52,071.
What does the Census say about the background of Dunst?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunst, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Dunst in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (405 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dunst appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (1.4%). 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 Dunst (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 Dunst mean?
A topographic surname referring to someone who lived near a dune or sandy hill. 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 Dunst (0.14 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 Dunst?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.