2000
#3,745
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,698
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.22
Uncommon Last name
Dunne
Derived from the Irish Ó Duinn, meaning "descendant of Donn," a nickname meaning "brown" or "dark."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,025 Americans carry the last name Dunne. That puts it at #3,941 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 34,190 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Dunne 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 Dunne with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
10K
1 in 34,190
Census rank
#3,941
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.7K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,742 bearers of the surname Dunne in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3941st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunne, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Dunne
The surname Dunne is of Irish origin, deriving from the Gaelic word "donn" meaning "brown-haired" or "brown". It was initially used as a descriptive nickname for someone with brown hair or a swarthy complexion.
The name is believed to have originated in County Kilkenny, Ireland, where it can be traced back to the 12th century. The Dunnes were part of the Gaelic nobility and held lands in the baronies of Galmoy and Shillelogher.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Annals of the Four Masters, a chronicle of medieval Irish history compiled in the early 17th century. It mentions a chieftain named Donnchadh Donn, who ruled a territory in Westmeath in the 12th century.
In the 13th century, the Dunnes were among the Irish families who were dispossessed of their lands during the Norman invasion of Ireland. Some adapted their name to the Anglo-Norman spelling of "Dun" or "Dunn", while others retained the Gaelic form "Dunne".
Notable historical figures with the surname Dunne include Sir John Dunne (1470-1528), a soldier and statesman who served as Lord Chancellor of Ireland during the reign of Henry VIII. Another prominent figure was Edward Dunne (1853-1937), who served as the 34th Governor of Illinois from 1913 to 1917.
Other notable Dunnes throughout history include John Dunne (1928-2003), an Irish actor best known for his roles in films like "The Gingerbread Man" and "True Confessions". Sister Mary Aquinas Dunne (1901-1984) was a renowned Irish nun and educator who founded several schools in Ireland and the United States.
In the world of literature, Finley Peter Dunne (1867-1936) was an American humorist and writer best known for his fictional character, Mr. Dooley, an Irish-American bartender whose witty observations satirized political and social issues of the time.
Despite its Irish origins, the surname Dunne has spread to various parts of the world, particularly through emigration from Ireland during periods of famine and unrest in the 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Dunne
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunne, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Dunne 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 Dunne surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 7,901
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 386
- Two or more races2.7% · 237
- Black or African American1.2% · 109
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 76
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Dunne
Dunne 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
#3,974
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,941
+243 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 3.03
Rank movement Down 229 places
2020
#3,941
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,742
-199 bearers (-2.2%)
Per 100,000 2.92
Rank movement Up 33 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,745 | 8,698 | 3.22 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,974 | 8,941 | 3.03 | +243 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 229 places |
| 2020 | #3,941 | 8,742 | 2.92 | -199 bearers (-2.2%) | Up 33 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 Dunne 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 | #3,974 | #3,941 | 0.8% |
| Count | 8,941 | 8,742 | -2.2% |
| Per 100K | 3.03 | 2.92 | -3.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Dunne bearers went from 8,941 to 8,742 (-2.2% change). The surname moved up 33 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,974 to #3,941.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Dunne
FAQ
Dunne surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Dunne?
Name Census estimates that about 10,025 living Americans carry the surname Dunne. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 34,190 residents.
How common is Dunne?
Dunne ranks #3,941 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.92 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,742 people with the surname Dunne. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,025), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.92 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Dunne.
Has Dunne become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Dunne went from 8,941 recorded bearers to 8,742. That is a decrease of 199 (-2.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #3,974 to #3,941.
What does the Census say about the background of Dunne?
Among Census respondents with the surname Dunne, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Dunne in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (7,901 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Dunne appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Hispanic (4.4%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Dunne (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 Dunne mean?
Derived from the Irish Ó Duinn, meaning "descendant of Donn," a nickname meaning "brown" or "dark." 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 Dunne (2.92 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 surname Dunne?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.