2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Alfsen
A surname likely derived from the Old Norse personal name "Alfr" meaning "elf".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Alfsen. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Alfsen 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Alfsen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Alfsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Alfsen
The surname ALFSEN has its origins in Norway, where it first emerged in the medieval period. It is derived from the Old Norse masculine given name Alfr, which means "elf" or "supernatural being." The suffix "-sen" is a patronymic indicating "son of," suggesting that the name originally referred to the son of a man named Alfr.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ALFSEN can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian documents dating back to the 12th century. In this collection, there is a reference to an individual named Alfsen Thordssen, who lived in the late 13th century and owned land in the region of Trøndelag.
During the 16th and 17th centuries, the ALFSEN name was particularly concentrated in the western regions of Norway, such as Hordaland and Sogn og Fjordane. It is believed that some members of the ALFSEN family may have been involved in the fishing and seafaring trades, which were important industries in these coastal areas.
One notable figure bearing the ALFSEN surname was Peder Alfsen (1540-1612), a Norwegian clergyman and scholar who served as the Bishop of Stavanger from 1591 until his death. Alfsen played a significant role in the implementation of the Reformation in Norway and was responsible for translating several religious texts into the Norwegian language.
Another individual of historical note was Nils Alfsen (1767-1842), a Norwegian poet and playwright who is remembered for his contributions to the development of Norwegian literature during the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Alfsen's works often explored themes of nationalism and cultural identity, reflecting the growing sense of Norwegian independence from Denmark during this period.
In the 19th century, the ALFSEN name was also associated with the Norwegian-American community. One example is Hans Alfsen (1835-1912), who emigrated from Norway to the United States in the mid-1800s and became a prominent businessman and community leader in the city of Chicago.
Other notable individuals with the ALFSEN surname include Einar Alfsen (1892-1966), a Norwegian sailor and businessman who played a crucial role in the establishment of the whaling industry in the Antarctic region, and Katrine Alfsen (1916-2008), a Norwegian educator and women's rights activist who campaigned for gender equality and educational reform.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Alfsen
Among Census respondents with the surname Alfsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Alfsen 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 Alfsen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White74.5% · 82
- Hispanic or Latino17.3% · 19
- Asian and Pacific Islander3.6% · 4
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
- Black or African American0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Alfsen
Alfsen 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+4 bearers (+3.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,463 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-4 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,226 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.6%) | Down 5,463 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -4 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 4,226 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 Alfsen 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 | #145,220 | #149,446 | -2.9% |
| Count | 114 | 110 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Alfsen bearers went from 114 to 110 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 4,226 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #149,446.
FAQ
Alfsen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Alfsen?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Alfsen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Alfsen?
Alfsen ranks #149,446 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 110 people with the surname Alfsen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Alfsen.
Has Alfsen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Alfsen went from 114 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 4 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Alfsen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Alfsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 74.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (17.3%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (3.6%). 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 Alfsen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 74.5% (82 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Alfsen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (74.5%), Hispanic (17.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (3.6%). 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 Alfsen (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 Alfsen mean?
A surname likely derived from the Old Norse personal name "Alfr" meaning "elf". 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 Alfsen (0.04 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 many people are called Alfsen?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Alfsen is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.