How common is the surname Dear?

3,677 people in the United States had the surname Dear in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 83,967 Americans. It ranked 8,906th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Dear?

Matthew Dear, American musician.

Where is the surname Dear most common?

Wikidata records people named Dear in the United States.

Is the surname Dear getting more or less common?

More common. 3,602 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 3,677 in 2010, up 2.1%.

The surname Dear

An English surname, carried by 3,677 people in the United States.

1 syllable Soundex D600

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Dear is more common than 94.5% of them.

Origin

English origin

English surname, related to the adjective dear and noun deer (from Old English deor (“wild animal”), used in many senses).

One of 1,446 English surnames on this site.

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 3,677 people named Dear in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 83,967 Americans. That is up 2.1% since 2000, when the Census counted 3,602.

#8,906

rank among US surnames

3,677

people in 2010

1.3

per 100,000 Americans

+2.1%

change since 2000 (was #8,426)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#8,900	Brigman	3,679	83,921
#8,904	Billington	3,678	83,944
#8,906	Dear	3,677	83,967
#8,907	Marine	3,676	83,990
#8,909	Stapp	3,675	84,012
#8,911	Claus	3,674	84,035
#8,914	Sloane	3,673	84,058

Who is named Dear

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

67% of people named Dear identified as white (not Hispanic), 24% as Black (not Hispanic) and 3.2% as Asian and Pacific Islander.

White (not Hispanic) 67%
Black (not Hispanic) 24%
Asian and Pacific Islander 3.2%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 2.8%
Two or more races 2.3%
American Indian and Alaska Native 0.5%

Compare: most common surnames among white Americans.

Famous Dears

1 notable person on Wikidata, most written-about first

Matthew Dear
American musician, born 1979

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Surnames that sound like Dear

Dear has the Soundex code D600, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code D600.

Other English surnames

All 1,446 English surnames

Questions

Where does the surname Dear come from?: English surname, related to the adjective dear and noun deer (from Old English deor (“wild animal”), used in many senses).
How common is the surname Dear?: 3,677 people in the United States had the surname Dear in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 83,967 Americans. It ranked 8,906th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Dear?: In the 2010 Census, 67% of people named Dear identified as white (not Hispanic), and 24% as Black (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Dear?: Matthew Dear, American musician.
Where is the surname Dear most common?: Wikidata records people named Dear in the United States.
Is the surname Dear getting more or less common?: More common. 3,602 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 3,677 in 2010, up 2.1%.