2000
#1,163
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 27,627
First available Census row
Per 100,000 10.24
Uncommon Last name
Dye
An occupational surname referring to someone who dyed fabrics or worked with dyes.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 31,097 Americans carry the last name Dye. That puts it at #1,266 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 9.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 11,022 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dye 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 Dye with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
31K
1 in 11,022
Census rank
#1,266
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
9.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
27K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 27,118 bearers of the surname Dye in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 9.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1266th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dye, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dye
The surname Dye originated in England and dates back to the early 13th century. It is an occupational name derived from the Old English word "deag" or "deah," which means "to dye" or "to color." This name was given to people who worked as dyers or colored cloth and fabrics.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dye can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of Oxfordshire from 1273, where a person named Johannes le Deyere was mentioned. The name also appeared in various other early records, such as the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1301, which listed a Richard le Dyer.
The Dye surname is closely associated with the dyeing industry, which was an important trade in medieval England. Dyers were skilled artisans who used natural dyes and pigments to color textiles, and their services were in high demand. Some notable individuals with the surname Dye from this period include William Dye, a dyer from York who was mentioned in records from 1379, and John Dye, a renowned dyer from London who lived in the late 15th century.
As the dyeing industry grew and spread across England, the Dye surname became more widespread. In the 16th century, records show the name appearing in various parts of the country, including the parish registers of Gloucestershire, where a Thomas Dye was listed in 1572.
One of the earliest known bearers of the Dye surname was Sir John Dye (c. 1495-1577), a wealthy merchant and alderman of London. He was a prominent figure in the city's trade and served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1556-1557.
Other notable individuals with the surname Dye throughout history include William Dye (1604-1688), a Puritan minister who emigrated to Massachusetts in the 17th century, and John Dye (1700-1758), a British architect who designed several notable buildings in London.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, the Dye surname continued to be found across England, with concentrations in counties such as Yorkshire, Lancashire, and Gloucestershire, reflecting the historical importance of the dyeing trade in these areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dye
Among Census respondents with the surname Dye, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Dye 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 Dye surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.4% · 21,798
- Black or African American10.9% · 2,950
- Two or more races4.3% · 1,176
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 859
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 168
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 167
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dye
Dye 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
#1,246
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 28,182
+555 bearers (+2.0%)
Per 100,000 9.55
Rank movement Down 83 places
2020
#1,266
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 27,118
-1,064 bearers (-3.8%)
Per 100,000 9.07
Rank movement Down 20 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,163 | 27,627 | 10.24 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,246 | 28,182 | 9.55 | +555 bearers (+2.0%) | Down 83 places |
| 2020 | #1,266 | 27,118 | 9.07 | -1,064 bearers (-3.8%) | Down 20 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 Dye 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 | #1,246 | #1,266 | -1.6% |
| Count | 28,182 | 27,118 | -3.8% |
| Per 100K | 9.55 | 9.07 | -5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dye bearers went from 28,182 to 27,118 (-3.8% change). The surname moved down 20 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,246 to #1,266.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Dye
FAQ
Dye surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dye?
Name Census estimates that about 31,097 living Americans carry the surname Dye. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 11,022 residents.
How common is Dye?
Dye ranks #1,266 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 9.07 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 27,118 people with the surname Dye. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (31,097), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 9.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 9.07 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 Dye.
Has Dye become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dye went from 28,182 recorded bearers to 27,118. That is a decrease of 1,064 (-3.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,246 to #1,266.
What does the Census say about the background of Dye?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dye, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.4%. The next largest groups are Black (10.9%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Dye in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.4% (21,798 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dye appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.4%), Black (10.9%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Dye (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 Dye mean?
An occupational surname referring to someone who dyed fabrics or worked with dyes. 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 Dye (9.07 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 Dye?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.