Find out how popular the last name Dwyer is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Dwyer.

Dwyer, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Dwyer surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Dwyer in America

Dwyer is the 1291st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Dwyer surname appeared 27,240 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 9 people would have the surname Dwyer.

We can also compare 2010 data for Dwyer to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Dwyer

The surname Dwyer has its origins in Ireland, where it first appeared in the 11th century. It is an anglicized version of the Irish Gaelic name "Ó Duibhir," which means "descendant of the dark or gloomy one." The Gaelic word "dubh" translates to "dark" or "black," indicating that the name may have originally referred to someone with a dark complexion or hair color.

The name Dwyer is found primarily in the counties of Tipperary, Limerick, and Cork, as well as other parts of Munster. It is believed to have originated in the area around Castletown and Cahir in County Tipperary, where the Dwyer clan was once prominent.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dwyer dates back to the 13th century in the Annals of Inisfallen, a chronicle of Irish history written by monks at the Inisfallen Abbey on an island in Killarney's Lower Lake. The annals mention a person named "Dubhir" in the year 1296.

The Dwyer surname is also mentioned in the Pipe Roll of Cloyne, a medieval record of taxation in the Diocese of Cloyne, County Cork, during the 14th century. This document provides evidence of the name's presence in Ireland during that time period.

Notable individuals with the surname Dwyer include:

1. Michael Dwyer (1772-1826), an Irish rebel leader who fought against British rule in the Irish Rebellion of 1798.
2. Philip Dwyer (1572-1628), an Irish Franciscan friar and bishop of Killaloe.
3. John Dwyer (1869-1940), an Irish-American politician who served as Mayor of New York City from 1901 to 1903.
4. James Dwyer (1858-1929), an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from New York.
5. William Dwyer (1825-1887), an Irish-American Roman Catholic priest and the first president of the University of Notre Dame.

Throughout its history, the surname Dwyer has also been associated with various place names in Ireland, such as Dwyersgrange in County Tipperary and Dwyershill in County Limerick. Variations in spelling, including Dyer, Dwire, and Duer, can be found in historical records, reflecting the evolution of the name over time.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Dwyer

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Dwyer.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Dwyer was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Dwyer has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Dwyer was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Dwyer, please contact us.

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