2000
#9,937
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,995
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.11
Rare Last name
Dyess
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "south-east hill" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,319 Americans carry the last name Dyess. That puts it at #10,574 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.97 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 103,270 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dyess 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
3.3K
1 in 103,270
Census rank
#10,574
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.9K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,894 bearers of the surname Dyess in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.97 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10574th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dyess, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Black (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dyess
The surname Dyess is believed to have its origins in Scotland, tracing back to the 16th century. It is thought to have derived from the Scottish Gaelic word "dìth," which means "want" or "lack." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive term for someone who was perceived as impoverished or lacking resources.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dyess can be found in the parish records of Lanarkshire, Scotland, in the late 1500s. This region, located in the central lowlands of Scotland, was home to many families bearing this surname during that time period.
The surname Dyess has also been linked to various place names in Scotland, such as the village of Dyess in Moray and the lands of Dyess in Ayrshire. These locations may have influenced the spelling and pronunciation of the name over time.
In the 17th century, the Dyess surname appeared in historical records related to the Scottish Covenanters, a religious movement that played a significant role in the struggles between Presbyterians and the Anglican church during that era. One notable figure from this time was John Dyess, a Covenanter who was persecuted for his beliefs in the late 1600s.
As Scottish families migrated to other parts of the world, the Dyess surname spread to various regions. In the 18th century, William Dyess, born in 1712, was among the early Scottish settlers in the American colonies, establishing a presence for the name in the New World.
Another prominent individual with the surname Dyess was Robert Dyess, a Scottish-born soldier who served in the British Army during the American Revolutionary War. Born in 1745, he fought against the American colonists and later settled in Canada after the war's end.
In the 19th century, the Dyess surname gained recognition through the achievements of individuals like James Dyess, a Scottish inventor and engineer born in 1832. He is credited with developing several innovative agricultural machinery designs that improved farming practices during the Industrial Revolution.
As time progressed, the Dyess surname continued to be carried by notable figures across various fields. One such individual was Arden Dyess, an American aviator and military officer who was born in 1915. He played a crucial role in the development of the United States Air Force and received numerous honors for his service during World War II.
These examples illustrate the rich history and global reach of the Dyess surname, which has its roots in the Scottish Highlands but has since been embraced by individuals from diverse backgrounds and backgrounds across the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dyess
Among Census respondents with the surname Dyess, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Black (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Dyess 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 Dyess surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.5% · 2,445
- Black or African American7.5% · 218
- Two or more races3.6% · 104
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 101
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dyess
Dyess 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
#10,437
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,082
+87 bearers (+2.9%)
Per 100,000 1.04
Rank movement Down 500 places
2020
#10,574
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,894
-188 bearers (-6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.97
Rank movement Down 137 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,937 | 2,995 | 1.11 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,437 | 3,082 | 1.04 | +87 bearers (+2.9%) | Down 500 places |
| 2020 | #10,574 | 2,894 | 0.97 | -188 bearers (-6.1%) | Down 137 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 Dyess 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 | #10,437 | #10,574 | -1.3% |
| Count | 3,082 | 2,894 | -6.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.04 | 0.97 | -6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dyess bearers went from 3,082 to 2,894 (-6.1% change). The surname moved down 137 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,437 to #10,574.
FAQ
Dyess surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dyess?
Name Census estimates that about 3,319 living Americans carry the surname Dyess. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 103,270 residents.
How common is Dyess?
Dyess ranks #10,574 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.97 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 2,894 people with the surname Dyess. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,319), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.97 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.97 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 Dyess.
Has Dyess become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dyess went from 3,082 recorded bearers to 2,894. That is a decrease of 188 (-6.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #10,437 to #10,574.
What does the Census say about the background of Dyess?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dyess, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.5%. The next largest groups are Black (7.5%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Dyess in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.5% (2,445 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dyess appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.5%), Black (7.5%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Dyess (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 Dyess mean?
An English toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "south-east hill" in Old English. 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 Dyess (0.97 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 Americans have the surname Dyess?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.