2000
#1,197
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 26,759
First available Census row
Per 100,000 9.92
Uncommon Last name
Dwyer
From the Irish Ó Duibhir, meaning "descendant of Duibhir," a personal name composed of the elements dubh "black" and fir "man."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 30,486 Americans carry the last name Dwyer. That puts it at #1,296 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 8.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 11,243 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dwyer 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Dwyer with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
30K
1 in 11,243
Census rank
#1,296
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
8.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
27K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 26,585 bearers of the surname Dwyer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 8.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1296th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dwyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Black (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dwyer
Among Census respondents with the surname Dwyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Black (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dwyer 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 Dwyer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.1% · 23,684
- Black or African American3.6% · 966
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 879
- Two or more races2.9% · 772
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 236
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 48
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dwyer
Dwyer 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
#1,291
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 27,240
+481 bearers (+1.8%)
Per 100,000 9.23
Rank movement Down 94 places
2020
#1,296
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 26,585
-655 bearers (-2.4%)
Per 100,000 8.89
Rank movement Down 5 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,197 | 26,759 | 9.92 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,291 | 27,240 | 9.23 | +481 bearers (+1.8%) | Down 94 places |
| 2020 | #1,296 | 26,585 | 8.89 | -655 bearers (-2.4%) | Down 5 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 Dwyer 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 | #1,291 | #1,296 | -0.4% |
| Count | 27,240 | 26,585 | -2.4% |
| Per 100K | 9.23 | 8.89 | -3.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dwyer bearers went from 27,240 to 26,585 (-2.4% change). The surname moved down 5 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,291 to #1,296.
FAQ
Dwyer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dwyer?
Name Census estimates that about 30,486 living Americans carry the surname Dwyer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 11,243 residents.
How common is Dwyer?
Dwyer ranks #1,296 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 8.89 per 100,000 residents, which is about 9 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 26,585 people with the surname Dwyer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (30,486), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 8.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 8.89 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 9 of them to have the surname Dwyer.
Has Dwyer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dwyer went from 27,240 recorded bearers to 26,585. That is a decrease of 655 (-2.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,291 to #1,296.
What does the Census say about the background of Dwyer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dwyer, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.1%. The next largest groups are Black (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Dwyer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.1% (23,684 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dwyer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.1%), Black (3.6%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Dwyer (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 Dwyer mean?
From the Irish Ó Duibhir, meaning "descendant of Duibhir," a personal name composed of the elements dubh "black" and fir "man." 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 Dwyer (8.89 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 are called Dwyer?
See how many Americans have the surname Dwyer on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.