2000
#40,552
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 508
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.19
Very Rare Last name
Akerson
Derived from the Old Norse personal name Áki, combined with the patronymic suffix -son, meaning "son of Áki."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 623 Americans carry the last name Akerson. That puts it at #42,928 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 550,167 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Akerson 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
623
1 in 550,167
Census rank
#42,928
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
543
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 543 bearers of the surname Akerson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 42928th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Akerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (14.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Akerson
The surname Akerson is of Anglo-Saxon origin and is believed to have derived from the Old English words "ac" meaning oak tree and "hurst" meaning a wooded hill or grove. It is a locational surname, indicating that the first bearers of this name resided near an oak grove or forest.
The name Akerson is thought to have originated in the counties of Hertfordshire and Bedfordshire in England during the 11th century. It was initially spelled as "Achurste" or "Akhurste" in various medieval records and documents.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Akerson can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it is listed as "Achurste" in reference to a landholder in Hertfordshire.
In the 13th century, the name appeared as "Akehurst" in the Pipe Rolls of Sussex, a record of taxation and financial accounts maintained by the English Crown.
Prominent individuals with the surname Akerson include:
1. Richard Akerson (c. 1564-1632), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Hertfordshire in the early 17th century.
2. William Akerson (1701-1778), a British merchant and landowner who lived in Bedfordshire and was involved in the East India Company trade.
3. Elizabeth Akerson (1782-1859), an English author and poet who wrote several works of fiction and poetry during the early 19th century.
4. John Akerson (1825-1901), an American politician and lawyer who served as the 18th Governor of Minnesota from 1887 to 1891.
5. Margaret Akerson (1910-1997), a renowned British artist and sculptor known for her abstract and modernist works, who had several exhibitions in London and New York during the 20th century.
Throughout history, the surname Akerson has also been associated with various place names, such as Akehurst Farm in East Sussex, England, and Akerson's Hill in Minnesota, United States, named after the former governor John Akerson.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Akerson
Among Census respondents with the surname Akerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (14.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Akerson 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 Akerson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White77.0% · 418
- Black or African American14.2% · 77
- Two or more races3.5% · 19
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 17
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.3% · 7
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Akerson
Akerson 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
#43,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 500
-8 bearers (-1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.17
Rank movement Down 2,654 places
2020
#42,928
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 543
+43 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 0.18
Rank movement Up 278 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #40,552 | 508 | 0.19 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #43,206 | 500 | 0.17 | -8 bearers (-1.6%) | Down 2,654 places |
| 2020 | #42,928 | 543 | 0.18 | +43 bearers (+8.6%) | Up 278 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 Akerson 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 | #43,206 | #42,928 | 0.6% |
| Count | 500 | 543 | 8.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.17 | 0.18 | 6.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Akerson bearers went from 500 to 543 (+8.6% change). The surname moved up 278 positions in the national ranking, going from #43,206 to #42,928.
FAQ
Akerson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Akerson?
Name Census estimates that about 623 living Americans carry the surname Akerson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 550,167 residents.
How common is Akerson?
Akerson ranks #42,928 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.18 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 543 people with the surname Akerson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (623), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.18 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.18 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Akerson.
Has Akerson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Akerson went from 500 recorded bearers to 543. That is an increase of 43 (+8.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #43,206 to #42,928.
What does the Census say about the background of Akerson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Akerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 77.0%. The next largest groups are Black (14.2%) and Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Akerson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 77.0% (418 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Akerson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (77.0%), Black (14.2%), Two or More Races (3.5%). 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 Akerson (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 Akerson mean?
Derived from the Old Norse personal name Áki, combined with the patronymic suffix -son, meaning "son of Áki." 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 Akerson (0.18 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 common is the surname Akerson?
See how many Americans have the surname Akerson on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.