2000
#19,128
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,315
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.49
Rare Last name
Deffenbaugh
A surname referring to someone from Deffenbach, Germany.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,415 Americans carry the last name Deffenbaugh. That puts it at #21,575 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.41 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 242,229 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Deffenbaugh 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
1.4K
1 in 242,229
Census rank
#21,575
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,234 bearers of the surname Deffenbaugh in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.41 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 21575th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Deffenbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Deffenbaugh
The surname DEFFENBAUGH originated in Germany and dates back to the early 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German word "Deffenbach," which refers to a small stream or brook. This suggests that the name may have initially been a place name referring to a settlement near a stream.
During the Middle Ages, many Germans adopted surnames derived from their place of origin or residence. The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be "Deffenbach" in a document from the town of Nuremberg, dated 1525.
In the 17th century, the name began to appear with various spellings, such as "Deffenbaugh," "Deffenbach," and "Deffenbacher," likely due to regional dialect variations and the inconsistencies in record-keeping at the time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname was Hans Deffenbaugh, a farmer who lived in the village of Bamberg, Bavaria, in the late 16th century. Another notable figure was Johann Deffenbach, a Lutheran minister who lived in Saxony in the early 17th century.
In the 18th century, the name began to spread beyond Germany as some families emigrated to other parts of Europe and North America. One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname in North America was Johann Deffenbaugh, a German immigrant who settled in Pennsylvania in the 1740s.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname DEFFENBAUGH. These include:
1. Wilhelm Deffenbaugh (1822-1901), a German-American artist known for his landscape paintings.
2. Eliza Deffenbaugh (1856-1936), an American educator and suffragist who campaigned for women's rights.
3. Johann Deffenbach (1592-1668), the Lutheran minister mentioned earlier.
4. Friedrich Deffenbaugh (1785-1845), a German philosopher and writer.
5. Anna Deffenbaugh (1810-1892), a German-American pioneer who settled in Ohio in the 1830s.
While the surname DEFFENBAUGH is not as common as some others, it has a rich history and can be traced back to its Germanic roots in the 16th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Deffenbaugh
Among Census respondents with the surname Deffenbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Deffenbaugh 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 Deffenbaugh surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.0% · 1,098
- Hispanic or Latino5.3% · 66
- Two or more races4.4% · 54
- Black or African American0.5% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Deffenbaugh
Deffenbaugh 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
#21,080
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,246
-69 bearers (-5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.42
Rank movement Down 1,952 places
2020
#21,575
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,234
-12 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.41
Rank movement Down 495 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,128 | 1,315 | 0.49 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #21,080 | 1,246 | 0.42 | -69 bearers (-5.2%) | Down 1,952 places |
| 2020 | #21,575 | 1,234 | 0.41 | -12 bearers (-1.0%) | Down 495 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 Deffenbaugh 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 | #21,080 | #21,575 | -2.3% |
| Count | 1,246 | 1,234 | -1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.42 | 0.41 | -1.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Deffenbaugh bearers went from 1,246 to 1,234 (-1.0% change). The surname moved down 495 positions in the national ranking, going from #21,080 to #21,575.
FAQ
Deffenbaugh surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Deffenbaugh?
Name Census estimates that about 1,415 living Americans carry the surname Deffenbaugh. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 242,229 residents.
How common is Deffenbaugh?
Deffenbaugh ranks #21,575 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.41 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 1,234 people with the surname Deffenbaugh. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,415), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.41 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.41 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 Deffenbaugh.
Has Deffenbaugh become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Deffenbaugh went from 1,246 recorded bearers to 1,234. That is a decrease of 12 (-1.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #21,080 to #21,575.
What does the Census say about the background of Deffenbaugh?
Among Census respondents with the surname Deffenbaugh, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.3%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Deffenbaugh in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (1,098 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Deffenbaugh appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.0%), Hispanic (5.3%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Deffenbaugh (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 Deffenbaugh mean?
A surname referring to someone from Deffenbach, Germany. 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 Deffenbaugh (0.41 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 common is the surname Deffenbaugh?
You can see how many people are called Deffenbaugh on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.