2000
#7,801
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,930
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.46
Rare Last name
Durkee
A French occupational surname referring to someone who lived near or worked at a fortified tower or keep.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,222 Americans carry the last name Durkee. That puts it at #8,577 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.23 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 81,183 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Durkee 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
4.2K
1 in 81,183
Census rank
#8,577
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,682 bearers of the surname Durkee in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.23 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8577th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Durkee, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Durkee
The surname DURKEE is believed to have originated in the region of Normandy, France, during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old French words "d'urquie" or "d'urquée," which refer to someone who hailed from Turkey or the area of modern-day Turkey.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive record of landholders and property commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The name appears as "de Urquee," referring to a Norman landowner in England. This suggests that the surname was likely brought to England by Norman settlers in the 11th century.
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Durke," "Durcke," and "Durkee," in various records and historical documents across England and France. These variations likely occurred due to regional dialects and the evolution of spelling conventions over time.
Notably, a Sir John Durkee was a prominent figure in the English Civil War (1642-1651), serving as a Parliamentarian officer. He was born in 1600 and died in 1670.
Another notable figure was Robert Durkee, a British explorer and cartographer who accompanied Captain James Cook on his second and third voyages to the Pacific Ocean in the late 18th century. He was instrumental in mapping and documenting various islands and coastlines in the region.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the surname DURKEE was in the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th century. John Durkee, born in 1629, was a prominent figure in the colony and served as a military officer during King Philip's War (1675-1678).
Another significant figure in American history was Ebenezer Durkee, born in 1719, who served as a Brigadier General in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He played a crucial role in several battles, including the Battle of Bunker Hill and the Battle of Saratoga.
In more recent times, Jesse Durkee (1816-1896) was a notable American politician and lawyer who served as a United States Senator from Wisconsin in the late 19th century.
While the surname DURKEE has evolved over centuries and spread across various regions, its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in Normandy, where it likely referred to someone who had connections to the area of modern-day Turkey.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Durkee
Among Census respondents with the surname Durkee, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Durkee 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 Durkee surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 3,327
- Two or more races4.1% · 151
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 124
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 38
- Black or African American1.0% · 37
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Durkee
Durkee 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
#8,248
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,017
+87 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 1.36
Rank movement Down 447 places
2020
#8,577
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,682
-335 bearers (-8.3%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Down 329 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,801 | 3,930 | 1.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,248 | 4,017 | 1.36 | +87 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 447 places |
| 2020 | #8,577 | 3,682 | 1.23 | -335 bearers (-8.3%) | Down 329 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 Durkee 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 | #8,248 | #8,577 | -4.0% |
| Count | 4,017 | 3,682 | -8.3% |
| Per 100K | 1.36 | 1.23 | -9.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Durkee bearers went from 4,017 to 3,682 (-8.3% change). The surname moved down 329 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,248 to #8,577.
FAQ
Durkee surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Durkee?
Name Census estimates that about 4,222 living Americans carry the surname Durkee. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 81,183 residents.
How common is Durkee?
Durkee ranks #8,577 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.23 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 3,682 people with the surname Durkee. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,222), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.23 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.23 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 Durkee.
Has Durkee become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Durkee went from 4,017 recorded bearers to 3,682. That is a decrease of 335 (-8.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,248 to #8,577.
What does the Census say about the background of Durkee?
Among Census respondents with the surname Durkee, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Durkee in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (3,327 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Durkee appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Durkee (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 Durkee mean?
A French occupational surname referring to someone who lived near or worked at a fortified tower or keep. 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 Durkee (1.23 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 Durkee?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.