2000
#66,878
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 276
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.10
Very Rare Last name
Deheer
A Dutch surname meaning "the lord" or "the gentleman".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 362 Americans carry the last name Deheer. That puts it at #67,362 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 946,835 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Deheer 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
362
1 in 946,835
Census rank
#67,362
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
316
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 316 bearers of the surname Deheer in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 67362nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Deheer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Deheer
The surname DEHEER is of Dutch origin, originating in the Netherlands during the late Middle Ages, around the 14th century. It is derived from the Dutch words "de" meaning "the" and "heer" meaning "lord" or "master," suggesting that the original bearers of this name may have held positions of authority or were landowners.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be traced back to the provinces of Holland and Zeeland, where it was often spelled as "de Heer" or "DeHeer." This variation in spelling was common during that time period before standardized spelling conventions were established.
One notable historical reference to the name DEHEER can be found in the records of the Dutch East India Company (Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie or VOC) during the 17th century. Jan DeHeer, born in 1632, was a merchant and ship captain who sailed for the VOC, making several voyages to the Dutch East Indies (present-day Indonesia).
In the 18th century, the name DEHEER appeared in several land records and parish registers in the Netherlands, particularly in the towns of Leiden and Rotterdam. One prominent individual was Pieter DeHeer (1714-1788), a wealthy merchant and landowner in Leiden.
As the Dutch emigrated to other parts of the world, the name DEHEER spread to various countries. In South Africa, for instance, the name can be traced back to the late 17th century, when Dutch settlers arrived at the Cape Colony. One such individual was Jacobus DeHeer (1685-1749), a farmer who owned land in the Stellenbosch region.
In the United States, the name DEHEER is believed to have arrived with Dutch immigrants in the 17th and 18th centuries, settling in areas like New York and New Jersey. One of the earliest recorded examples is that of Hendrick DeHeer (1721-1803), a farmer from Long Island, New York.
Other notable individuals with the surname DEHEER include:
1. Johan DeHeer (1809-1879), a Dutch painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes.
2. Adriaan DeHeer (1858-1932), a Dutch architect who designed several notable buildings in Amsterdam and Rotterdam.
3. Pieter DeHeer (1892-1966), a Dutch journalist and writer who published several novels and short stories.
4. Gerrit DeHeer (1916-2004), a South African rugby player who represented the national team in the 1940s.
5. Jan DeHeer (born 1952), a Dutch politician who served as a member of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2004.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Deheer
Among Census respondents with the surname Deheer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Deheer 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 Deheer surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White86.4% · 273
- Black or African American8.2% · 26
- Two or more races2.5% · 8
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.3% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Deheer
Deheer 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
#62,714
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 319
+43 bearers (+15.6%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Up 4,164 places
2020
#67,362
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 316
-3 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.11
Rank movement Down 4,648 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #66,878 | 276 | 0.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #62,714 | 319 | 0.11 | +43 bearers (+15.6%) | Up 4,164 places |
| 2020 | #67,362 | 316 | 0.11 | -3 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 4,648 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 Deheer 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 | #62,714 | #67,362 | -7.4% |
| Count | 319 | 316 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.11 | 0.11 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Deheer bearers went from 319 to 316 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 4,648 positions in the national ranking, going from #62,714 to #67,362.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Deheer
FAQ
Deheer surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Deheer?
Name Census estimates that about 362 living Americans carry the surname Deheer. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 946,835 residents.
How common is Deheer?
Deheer ranks #67,362 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.11 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 316 people with the surname Deheer. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (362), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.11 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 Deheer.
Has Deheer become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Deheer went from 319 recorded bearers to 316. That is a decrease of 3 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #62,714 to #67,362.
What does the Census say about the background of Deheer?
Among Census respondents with the surname Deheer, the largest self-reported group is White at 86.4%. The next largest groups are Black (8.2%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Deheer in the 2020 Census, accounting for 86.4% (273 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Deheer appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (86.4%), Black (8.2%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Deheer (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 Deheer mean?
A Dutch surname meaning "the lord" or "the gentleman". 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 Deheer (0.11 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 last name Deheer?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Deheer on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.