Explore the Family Name Debus
The meaning of Debus
1. German: from a personal name, a vernacular short form of Matthäus (see Matthew). This surname is also found in France (Alsace and Lorraine); compare Debs. 2. French: habitational name, with fused preposition de ‘from’, for someone from any of various places called Bus (from a regional form of bois ‘wood’) in Eure, Pas-de-Calais, and Somme.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Debus in the United States?
Based on the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Debus saw a slight decrease in its popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the surname ranked 29,598 in popularity with a count of 751 bearers in the U.S., equating to approximately 0.28 per 100,000 people. By 2010, the ranking had slipped to 31,689, with only 729 individuals carrying the Debus surname, or roughly 0.25 per 100,000 residents. This represents a change of -7.06 in ranking and -2.93 in count over the decade.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #29,598 | #31,689 | -7.06% |
| Count | 751 | 729 | -2.93% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.28 | 0.25 | -10.71% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Debus
The Decennial U.S. Census also provides information on the ethnic identity of those with the Debus surname. In 2000, the majority identified as White (96.27%), followed by Hispanic (1.07%), and American Indian and Alaskan Native (0.93%). A small proportion of individuals reported being of two or more ethnicities (1.46%). Ten years later, the proportion identifying as White dropped slightly to 94.38%, while those identifying as Hispanic increased to 1.37%. The percentage of Debus individuals reporting two or more ethnicities nearly doubled to 2.74%, indicating a growing diversity within this surname group. The data for Asian/Pacific Islander and Black ethnicities remained constant at 0%.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 96.27% | 94.38% | -1.96% |
| Two or More Races | 1.46% | 2.74% | 87.67% |
| Hispanic | 1.07% | 1.37% | 28.04% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Black | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0.93% | 0% | 0% |