Find out how popular the last name Anselm is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Anselm.

Anselm, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Anselm surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Anselm in America

Anselm is the 45105th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Anselm surname appeared 475 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Anselm.

We can also compare 2010 data for Anselm to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Anselm

The surname Anselm has its origins in the Germanic name Anselm, which itself is derived from the Old German words 'ans' meaning 'divine protection' and 'helm' meaning 'helmet' or 'protection'. The name was initially fairly common across parts of medieval Europe, particularly in areas of Germanic influence.

One of the earliest recorded examples of the surname Anselm can be found in the Domesday Book, a detailed survey of landholdings across England completed in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. Here, several men bearing the name are mentioned as holding estates across various counties.

By the 12th century, the surname had spread across parts of modern-day Germany, France, Italy, and beyond. Notable early examples include Anselm of Canterbury (c.1033-1109), an Italian philosopher and theologian who served as Archbishop of Canterbury, and Anselm of Laon (c.1050-1117), a French philosopher and theologian famed for his work in scholasticism.

Over the following centuries, the surname took on various spellings across Europe, including Anselmi, Anselmetti, and Anselme. These different spellings often reflected local linguistic and dialectical variations. In Germany, for example, spellings like Anselm and Anselmen persisted.

Other famous bearers of the surname Anselm throughout history include Anselm Franz von Ingelheim (1634-1695), Prince-Archbishop of Mainz; Anton Anselm Desing (1766-1837), a German Benedictine theologian; and Anselm Bayly (c.1719-1794), an English Catholic priest convicted of treason.

While most prevalent in parts of Germany, France, and Italy during earlier centuries, the surname Anselm also eventually spread to other areas of Europe as people migrated. Over time, it saw use in countries like England, Spain, and Poland, among others.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Anselm

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Anselm.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Anselm was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Anselm has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Anselm was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Anselm, please contact us.

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