Dowse Surname

116,721st
Most Common
surname in the World

Approximately 3,948 people bear this surname

Most prevalent in:
England
Highest density in:
Jersey

Dowse Surname Definition:

This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of David,' from nick. Daw or Dow; v. Dawson for many instances.

Agnes Dowe, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Hugo Dowe, 1379: ibid.

Alicia Dowe, 1379: ibid.

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Dowse Surname Distribution Map

PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England1,5341:36,3224,763
Australia9581:28,1793,828
United States7481:484,57140,975
Canada2521:146,21314,975
South Africa1441:376,23433,811
Ireland711:66,3234,252
Wales631:49,1204,600
New Zealand441:102,91613,667
Scotland331:162,2379,329
Northern Ireland211:87,8595,745
Thailand121:5,886,529390,733
Qatar91:262,00030,726
Denmark91:627,19136,734
Jersey51:19,8403,614
Malaysia51:5,898,845196,803
Brazil41:53,518,583632,670
Philippines41:25,309,556279,062
France41:16,605,680368,153
Venezuela41:7,551,01953,668
United Arab Emirates41:2,290,56860,372
Argentina31:14,247,805235,975
Switzerland31:2,737,638105,941
Italy31:20,385,563143,117
China21:683,660,78330,601
Turkey11:77,821,422191,047
Czechia11:10,633,469206,023
Singapore11:5,507,70347,049
Vietnam11:92,646,0548,382
Colombia11:47,774,07244,230
Serbia11:7,144,94838,459
Germany11:80,505,459560,955
Netherlands11:16,887,176156,465
Hong Kong11:7,335,48316,643
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
Ireland971:45,6693,990
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
England1,0091:24,1583,355
Scotland81:467,90212,875
Wales61:261,4039,165
Jersey31:17,2942,528
PlaceIncidenceFrequencyRank in Area
United States1481:339,31526,182

Dowse (12) may also be a first name.

Dowse Surname Meaning

From Where Does The Surname Originate? meaning and history

This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of David,' from nick. Daw or Dow; v. Dawson for many instances.

Agnes Dowe, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Hugo Dowe, 1379: ibid.

Alicia Dowe, 1379: ibid.

Adam Dowe-man, i.e. the servant of Dow, 1379: ibid.

1573-4. William Dowe and Ellenor Ellyott: Marriage Lic. (London).

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

This surname is derived from the name of an ancestor. 'the son of Douce,' which see. The evidence is in favour of this beingthe chief parent.

Richard Doucesone, Somerset, 1 Edward III: Kirby's Quest.

Johannes Douceson, 1379: Poll Tax of Howdenshire.

Emmota Douceson, 1379: ibid.

John fil. Dousoe.: Knight's Fees (Surtees Society).

John Dowsson. Calendar of Proceedings in Chancery, temp. Elizabeth I.

(a) Bapt. 'the son of David,' nick. Daw and Dow; v. Dow.

Beatrix Daude-wyf, 1379: Poll Tax of Yorkshire.

Johannes Dauson, 1379: ibid.

Johanna Dowe-doghter, 1379: ibid.

Ricardus Dauson, 1379: ibid.

Adam Dowe-man, 1379: ibid.

Agnes Dyconwyfdowson, i.e. the wife of Dycon, son of Dow, 1379: ibid.

A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames (1896) by Charles Wareing Endell Bardsley

Though never numerous this name is in Ireland continuously since the end of the thirteenth century.

In 1305 it appears in a Co. Kildare law case as Douez, i.e. Old French le Douz (from Latin dulcis). By 1326it had become Dousse and Douce, the former a juror at Shankill, Co. Dublin, the latter a freeholder at Rathcoole on the border of Co. Dublin and Kildare. The name was in England too; among the Cromwellian “adventurers” we find the ‘name Dowse and Dowys, and in 1642 a Mr. Dowse was one of the Commissioners for the Affairs of Ireland. Seventeenth and eighteenth century wills place them in Cos.

Wicklow and Wexford, and more modern statistics indicate that they are still found in those counties as well as in the city of Dublin.

Supplement to Irish Families (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

For Douce, q.v.

Surnames of the United Kingdom (1912) by Henry Harrison

Derived from French douce sweet, this name is in Dublin and adjacent counties since the early fourteenth century. SIF 57

A Guide to Irish Names (1964) by Edward MacLysaght

Probably a corruption of the Gaelic, Dhu, i.e. black; but don or doo, the Scottish for dove or pigeon, may be the origin. Dow, without prefix, is found in H.R. It also appears to have been a personal name, and to have given rise to Dowson, Dowse, Dowsing, and Dowsett, and also to the local name Dowsby in Lincolnshire.

Patronymica Britannica (1860) by Mark Antony Lower

Black.

The Origin and Signification of Scottish Surnames (1862) by Clifford Stanley Sims (1839-1896)

From Douce.

The Norman People (1874)

Dowse was a name represented in Freiston in 1544 and in Wrangle in 1642 (T.).

Homes of Family Names in Great Britain (1890) by Henry Brougham Guppy

Dowse Last Name Facts

Where Does The Last Name Dowse Come From? nationality or country of origin

Dowse is borne by more people in England than any other country or territory. It may also occur as:. Click here for further possible spellings of this last name.

How Common Is The Last Name Dowse? popularity and diffusion

This surname is the 116,721st most prevalent last name world-wide, borne by around 1 in 1,845,883 people. It occurs mostly in Europe, where 44 percent of Dowse reside; 44 percent reside in Northern Europe and 44 percent reside in British Isles. Dowse is also the 3,306,491st most frequently occurring first name worldwide, held by 12 people.

The surname Dowse is most numerous in England, where it is carried by 1,534 people, or 1 in 36,322. In England it is most prevalent in: Lincolnshire, where 16 percent reside, Greater London, where 11 percent reside and Hampshire, where 8 percent reside. Outside of England it exists in 32 countries. It is also common in Australia, where 24 percent reside and The United States, where 19 percent reside.

Dowse Family Population Trend historical fluctuation

The frequency of Dowse has changed through the years. In England the number of people bearing the Dowse last name expanded 152 percent between 1881 and 2014; in The United States it expanded 505 percent between 1880 and 2014; in Ireland it fell 27 percent between 1901 and 2014; in Wales it expanded 1,050 percent between 1881 and 2014 and in Scotland it expanded 413 percent between 1881 and 2014.

Dowse Last Name Statistics demography

The religious adherence of those bearing the Dowse surname is principally Anglican (82%) in Ireland.

In The United States those holding the Dowse last name are 12.38% more likely to be registered Republicans than The US average, with 59.15% registered to vote for the political party.

The amount Dowse earn in different countries varies greatly. In South Africa they earn 55.72% more than the national average, earning R 370,044 per year; in United States they earn 7.62% more than the national average, earning $46,437 USD per year and in Canada they earn 5.04% more than the national average, earning $52,186 CAD per year.

Phonetically Similar Names

SurnameSimilarityWorldwide IncidencePrevalency
Dowsey91360/
Dowset919/
Douwse914/
Dowsee911/
Dowses911/
Dows89500/
Dowsier831/
Dowsher831/
Dowseth830/
Douws80202/
Dewse80107/
Dawse808/
Dowsa804/
Dowce802/
Dowsy802/
Dobse801/
Dowge801/
Dowsh801/
Dawsey731,476/
Dowzer7375/
Dhawse7314/
Dowsai738/
Dowjee737/
Dewsse734/
Dowsha734/
Dowstt733/
Dawsie732/
Dowdge731/
Dhowsh731/
Dewsie731/
Dewshe731/
Dowdje731/
Dowssa731/
Dowsza731/
Dowcet731/
Dobseh731/
Dawsee731/
Dawsed731/
Dofsey730/
Dowsit730/
Dawset730/
Dawshe730/
Daws674,785/
Dobs67297/
Dofs6787/
Dowcett6746/
Dowz6741/
Dowches6727/
Dovs674/
Dowchey672/
Dhawshe672/
Dawsett671/
Dawsier671/
Dowschi671/
Dawsser671/
Dowsouy671/
Dowshit670/
Deewsey670/
Dowcher670/
Dowzier670/
Dawsher670/
Dowsitt670/

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Footnotes

  • Surnames are taken as the first part of an person's inherited family name, caste, clan name or in some cases patronymic
  • Descriptions may contain details on the name's etymology, origin, ethnicity and history. They are largely reproduced from 3rd party sources; diligence is advised on accepting their validity - more information
  • Name distribution statistics are generated from a global database of over 4 billion people - more information
  • Heatmap: Dark red means there is a higher occurrence of the name, transitioning to light yellow signifies a progressively lower occurrence. Clicking on selected countries will show mapping at a regional level
  • Rank: Name are ranked by incidence using the ordinal ranking method; the name that occurs the most is assigned a rank of 1; name that occur less frequently receive an incremented rank; if two or more name occur the same number of times they are assigned the same rank and successive rank is incremented by the total preceeding names
  • Ethnic group cannot necessarily be determined by geographic occurrence
  • Similar: Names listed in the "Similar" section are phonetically similar and may not have any relation to Dowse
  • To find out more about this surname's family history, lookup records on Family​Search, My​Heritage, FindMyPast and Ancestry. Further information may be obtained by DNA analysis