How common is the surname Davidson?

103,930 people in the United States had the surname Davidson in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,971 Americans. It ranked 301st of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Davidson?

Pete Davidson, American comedian and actor (born 1993), followed by Donald Davidson.

Where is the surname Davidson most common?

Wikidata records people named Davidson in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom and 2 other countries.

How do you pronounce Davidson?

Davidson is /ˈdeɪvɪdsən/, 3 syllables.

Is the surname Davidson getting more or less common?

More common. 102,044 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 103,930 in 2010, up 1.8%.

Is Davidson also a first name?

Yes. Davidson is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.

The surname Davidson

A patronymic surname, carried by 103,930 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ˈdeɪvɪdsən/ 3 syllables Soundex D132

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Davidson is more common than 99.8% of them.

Origin

From David + -son.

Davidson is a patronymic surname: formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 103,930 people named Davidson in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 2,971 Americans. That is up 1.8% since 2000, when the Census counted 102,044.

#301

rank among US surnames

103,930

people in 2010

per 100,000 Americans

+1.8%

change since 2000 (was #269)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#292	Banks	105,833	2,917
#293	Padilla	105,365	2,930
#294	Day	105,091	2,938
#295	Walsh	105,079	2,938
#296	Bowman	105,007	2,940
#297	Schultz	104,888	2,944
#298	Luna	104,518	2,954

Who is named Davidson

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

84% of people named Davidson identified as white (not Hispanic), 10% as Black (not Hispanic) and 2.4% as Hispanic or Latino (any race).

White (not Hispanic) 84%
Black (not Hispanic) 10%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.4%
Two or more races 1.9%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.7%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.7%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Davidsons

41 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

Pete Davidson
American comedian and actor (born 1993)
Donald Davidson
American philosopher (1917–2003)
Jaye Davidson
British-American actor, born 1968
Jason Davidson
Australian association football player, born 1991
Owen Davidson
Australian tennis player, 1943–2023
Eileen Davidson
American actress, born 1959
Amy Davidson
American actress, born 1979
Tierna Davidson
American soccer player (born 1998)
Avram Davidson
American writer (1923–1993)
Adam Davidson
American actor and television director, born 1964
Max Davidson
Actor (1875-1950)
Hilda Ellis Davidson
British academic (1914-2006)

Notable Davidsons come mostly from the United States (28), Australia (7) and the United Kingdom (4).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Davidson

Davids

Davidson has the Soundex code D132, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code D132.

Questions

Where does the surname Davidson come from?: From David + -son.
How common is the surname Davidson?: 103,930 people in the United States had the surname Davidson in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 2,971 Americans. It ranked 301st of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Davidson?: In the 2010 Census, 84% of people named Davidson identified as white (not Hispanic), and 10% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Davidson?: Pete Davidson, American comedian and actor (born 1993), followed by Donald Davidson.
Where is the surname Davidson most common?: Wikidata records people named Davidson in the United States, Australia and the United Kingdom and 2 other countries.
How do you pronounce Davidson?: Davidson is /ˈdeɪvɪdsən/, 3 syllables.
What type of surname is Davidson?: Davidson is a patronymic surname, formed from a father’s (or ancestor’s) given name.
Is the surname Davidson getting more or less common?: More common. 102,044 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 103,930 in 2010, up 1.8%.
Is Davidson also a first name?: Yes. Davidson is used as a first name as well as a surname; its first-name page has the meaning and how many babies were given it.