2000
#5,483
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,832
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.16
Rare Last name
Durst
A German and Jewish occupational surname denoting someone who is thirsty or in need of a drink.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,564 Americans carry the last name Durst. That puts it at #5,822 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.92 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 52,217 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Durst 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
6.6K
1 in 52,217
Census rank
#5,822
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,724 bearers of the surname Durst in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.92 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5822nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Durst, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.5%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Durst
The surname Durst is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "durst" meaning "thirst." It is believed to have originated as a descriptive name or a nickname for someone who was known for drinking a lot or having a propensity for being thirsty.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Durst can be traced back to the late 13th century in various regions of Germany, including Bavaria and Saxony. One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Hermann Durst, mentioned in records from the town of Rottweil in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, dated around 1290.
During the medieval period, the surname Durst appeared in various spellings, such as Durste, Durstig, and Durstel, reflecting regional variations in pronunciation and spelling conventions. Some of these variations may have originated from place names or locations where the name was particularly prevalent.
Historical records show that the Durst family had a presence in several German cities and towns. For instance, the Durst family was recorded in the city of Nuremberg in the 15th century, with Johannes Durst being mentioned in a document dated 1462.
Notable individuals with the surname Durst throughout history include:
1. Johann Konrad Durst (1675-1732), a German lawyer and legal scholar from Nuremberg.
2. Johann Baptist Durst (1770-1853), a German Catholic theologian and professor from Bamberg.
3. Friedrich Durst (1789-1876), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and city views.
4. Gustav Durst (1876-1957), a German engineer and inventor who developed the Durst enlarger for photography.
5. Josef Durst (1876-1961), an Austrian politician and member of the Christian Social Party.
The surname Durst continues to be found in various parts of Germany, as well as in other German-speaking regions of Europe and among descendants of German immigrants worldwide.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Durst
Among Census respondents with the surname Durst, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.5%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Durst 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 Durst surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.0% · 5,094
- Black or African American4.5% · 260
- Two or more races3.1% · 175
- Hispanic or Latino2.4% · 140
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 44
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Durst
Durst 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
#5,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,995
+163 bearers (+2.8%)
Per 100,000 2.03
Rank movement Down 297 places
2020
#5,822
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,724
-271 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 1.92
Rank movement Down 42 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,483 | 5,832 | 2.16 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,780 | 5,995 | 2.03 | +163 bearers (+2.8%) | Down 297 places |
| 2020 | #5,822 | 5,724 | 1.92 | -271 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 42 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 Durst 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 | #5,780 | #5,822 | -0.7% |
| Count | 5,995 | 5,724 | -4.5% |
| Per 100K | 2.03 | 1.92 | -5.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Durst bearers went from 5,995 to 5,724 (-4.5% change). The surname moved down 42 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,780 to #5,822.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Durst
FAQ
Durst surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Durst?
Name Census estimates that about 6,564 living Americans carry the surname Durst. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 52,217 residents.
How common is Durst?
Durst ranks #5,822 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.92 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,724 people with the surname Durst. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,564), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.92 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.92 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Durst.
Has Durst become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Durst went from 5,995 recorded bearers to 5,724. That is a decrease of 271 (-4.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,780 to #5,822.
What does the Census say about the background of Durst?
Among Census respondents with the surname Durst, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.0%. The next largest groups are Black (4.5%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Durst in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.0% (5,094 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Durst appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.0%), Black (4.5%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Durst (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 Durst mean?
A German and Jewish occupational surname denoting someone who is thirsty or in need of a drink. 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 Durst (1.92 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 Durst?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.