2000
#286
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 96,425
First available Census row
Per 100,000 35.74
Common Last name
Douglas
A surname of Scottish origin referring to a place near water or derived from the Gaelic term for "dark water."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 111,322 Americans carry the last name Douglas. That puts it at #324 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 32.48 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,079 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Douglas 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 Douglas with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
111K
1 in 3,079
Census rank
#324
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
32.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
97K
common in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 97,078 bearers of the surname Douglas in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 32.48 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 324th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Douglas, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Douglas
The surname Douglas is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic words 'dubh' meaning 'dark' and 'glas' meaning 'green' or 'stream'. It is believed to have originated in the 12th century in the area of Douglas Water in Lanarkshire, Scotland.
The name Douglas is first recorded in the late 12th century, with one of the earliest known references being to a William de Douglas in the Ragman Rolls of 1296. These rolls were a collection of instruments recording the submission of Scottish nobles and landowners to Edward I of England.
The Douglas family became one of the most powerful and influential families in Scotland during the Middle Ages. Notable members include Sir James Douglas, a Scottish knight and companion of Robert the Bruce, who lived from around 1286 to 1330. He was known for carrying the heart of Robert the Bruce on a crusade to the Holy Land after the king's death.
Another prominent figure was Archibald Douglas, Earl of Douglas, who lived from around 1369 to 1424. He was a Scottish nobleman and military leader who played a significant role in the conflict between Scotland and England during the late 14th and early 15th centuries.
In the 16th century, the Douglas family split into two main branches, the Red Douglases and the Black Douglases, named after the color of their hair. A notable member from this period was James Douglas, 4th Earl of Morton, who lived from 1516 to 1581. He was a Scottish nobleman and regent of Scotland during the minority of King James VI.
The name Douglas also has connections to place names in Scotland, such as the town of Douglas in South Lanarkshire and the Douglas Water, a river that flows through the region. The earliest recorded spelling of the place name is 'Douglasdale' in the 12th century.
Other notable individuals with the surname Douglas throughout history include Thomas Douglas, 5th Earl of Selkirk, a Scottish philanthropist and founder of the Red River Colony in Canada, who lived from 1771 to 1820, and Stephen A. Douglas, an American politician and lawyer who lived from 1813 to 1861 and was a prominent figure in the debates over slavery and the lead-up to the American Civil War.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Douglas
Among Census respondents with the surname Douglas, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Douglas 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 Douglas surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White55.7% · 54,059
- Black or African American34.2% · 33,191
- Two or more races4.9% · 4,750
- Hispanic or Latino3.8% · 3,737
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 683
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 658
Timeline
Historical Census data for Douglas
Douglas 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
#311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101,458
+5,033 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 34.39
Rank movement Down 25 places
2020
#324
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 97,078
-4,380 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 32.48
Rank movement Down 13 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #286 | 96,425 | 35.74 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #311 | 101,458 | 34.39 | +5,033 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 25 places |
| 2020 | #324 | 97,078 | 32.48 | -4,380 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 13 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 Douglas 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 | #311 | #324 | -4.2% |
| Count | 101,458 | 97,078 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 34.39 | 32.48 | -5.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Douglas bearers went from 101,458 to 97,078 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 13 positions in the national ranking, going from #311 to #324.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Douglas
FAQ
Douglas surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Douglas?
Name Census estimates that about 111,322 living Americans carry the surname Douglas. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,079 residents.
How common is Douglas?
Douglas ranks #324 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Common." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 32.48 per 100,000 residents, which is about 32 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 97,078 people with the surname Douglas. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (111,322), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 32.48 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 32.48 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 32 of them to have the surname Douglas.
Has Douglas become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Douglas went from 101,458 recorded bearers to 97,078. That is a decrease of 4,380 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #311 to #324.
What does the Census say about the background of Douglas?
Among Census respondents with the surname Douglas, the largest self-reported group is White at 55.7%. The next largest groups are Black (34.2%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Douglas in the 2020 Census, accounting for 55.7% (54,059 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Douglas appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (55.7%), Black (34.2%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Douglas (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 Douglas mean?
A surname of Scottish origin referring to a place near water or derived from the Gaelic term for "dark water." 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 Douglas (32.48 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 Douglas?
You can see how many people have the surname Douglas on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.