2000
#21,814
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.41
Rare Last name
Dygert
A German surname derived from a contracted form of the personal name "Dietrich".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,241 Americans carry the last name Dygert. That puts it at #24,125 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.36 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 276,192 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dygert 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
1.2K
1 in 276,192
Census rank
#24,125
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,082 bearers of the surname Dygert in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.36 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 24125th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dygert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dygert
The surname Dygert is believed to have originated in Germany, with its earliest known use dating back to the 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the German word "Diger," which means "thick" or "stout," and may have been used as a descriptive name for someone of a larger build.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Dygert can be found in the town records of Dortmund, Germany, from the year 1587. Here, a man named Hans Dygert is mentioned as a resident and landowner. Another early reference to the name comes from the baptismal records of the church in Essen, where a child named Anna Dygert was baptized in 1612.
In the 17th century, the Dygert name appears to have spread to other parts of Germany, as well as neighboring regions. In 1652, a Johann Dygert is recorded as living in the town of Worms, which was then part of the Holy Roman Empire. Additionally, a family with the name Dygert is documented as residing in the village of Niederemmel, in what is now Luxembourg, in the late 1600s.
As the Dygert family continued to expand and migrate, some members eventually made their way to North America. One of the earliest known Dygerts in America was Johann Dygert, who was born in Germany in 1704 and immigrated to Pennsylvania in the 1740s. He and his wife, Anna Maria, settled in the area that is now Berks County, where they established a farm and raised their family.
Another notable early American Dygert was Jacob Dygert, who was born in 1765 in Pennsylvania and served as a private in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. He later moved to Ohio, where he became a successful farmer and businessman.
Throughout the 19th and early 20th centuries, the Dygert name can be found in various records and historical accounts across the United States and Canada. Some notable individuals include:
1. William Dygert (1828-1909), a businessman and politician from New York who served as a member of the state assembly.
2. Mary Dygert (1857-1932), an educator and women's rights activist from Ohio who founded one of the first kindergartens in the state.
3. Henry Dygert (1868-1947), a farmer and inventor from Iowa who patented several agricultural implements.
4. Charles Dygert (1886-1964), a professional baseball player who played for the Philadelphia Athletics and the Boston Braves in the early 1900s.
5. Edith Dygert (1902-1988), a writer and journalist from California who published several books and articles on travel and culture.
While the Dygert name may not be as common as some others, it has a rich history that spans multiple countries and continents, with individuals who have made noteworthy contributions in various fields over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dygert
Among Census respondents with the surname Dygert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Dygert 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 Dygert surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 1,009
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 34
- Two or more races3.0% · 33
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 4
- Black or African American0.1% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dygert
Dygert 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
#22,924
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,116
+5 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 1,110 places
2020
#24,125
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,082
-34 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 0.36
Rank movement Down 1,201 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #21,814 | 1,111 | 0.41 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #22,924 | 1,116 | 0.38 | +5 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 1,110 places |
| 2020 | #24,125 | 1,082 | 0.36 | -34 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 1,201 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 Dygert 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 | #22,924 | #24,125 | -5.2% |
| Count | 1,116 | 1,082 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.38 | 0.36 | -4.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dygert bearers went from 1,116 to 1,082 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 1,201 positions in the national ranking, going from #22,924 to #24,125.
FAQ
Dygert surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dygert?
Name Census estimates that about 1,241 living Americans carry the surname Dygert. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 276,192 residents.
How common is Dygert?
Dygert ranks #24,125 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.36 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,082 people with the surname Dygert. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,241), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.36 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.36 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Dygert.
Has Dygert become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dygert went from 1,116 recorded bearers to 1,082. That is a decrease of 34 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #22,924 to #24,125.
What does the Census say about the background of Dygert?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dygert, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.1%) and Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Dygert in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (1,009 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dygert appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (3.1%), Two or More Races (3.0%). 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 Dygert (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 Dygert mean?
A German surname derived from a contracted form of the personal name "Dietrich". 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 Dygert (0.36 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 Dygert?
For a quick modern take, check how many people are called Dygert on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.