2000
#5,459
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,860
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.17
Rare Last name
Bergen
A habitational surname referring to people from any of several places named Bergen, meaning "mountains" or "hills."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,450 Americans carry the last name Bergen. That puts it at #5,910 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 53,140 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bergen 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
6.5K
1 in 53,140
Census rank
#5,910
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,625 bearers of the surname Bergen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5910th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bergen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bergen
The surname Bergen originates from the Netherlands and has been in use since the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Dutch word "berg," meaning "hill" or "mountain," and likely referred to someone who lived near or came from a hilly or mountainous area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bergen can be found in the 14th century Dutch records, where it was spelled as "van Bergen" or "van den Bergen." This suggests that the name was initially used as a locative surname, indicating someone from a particular place called Bergen or a similar name.
The name Bergen is also associated with the city of Bergen in Norway, which was an important trading center during the Middle Ages. It is possible that some individuals with this surname may have originated from or had connections to this city.
In the 15th century, a notable figure named Anthonius van Bergen (c. 1420-1475) was a Dutch physician and scholar who wrote several works on medicine and philosophy. He is considered one of the earliest Dutch humanists.
Another prominent individual with the surname Bergen was Dirck van Bergen (c. 1593-1667), a Dutch Golden Age painter known for his still-life and genre paintings. His works are currently housed in various museums across Europe.
In the 19th century, a Norwegian author named Johan Sebastian Cammermeyer Welhaven (1807-1873) was born with the original surname Bergen. He was a prominent figure in the Norwegian romantic nationalist movement and is considered one of Norway's greatest lyric poets.
The surname Bergen has also been associated with various place names, such as Bergen op Zoom in the Netherlands and Bergen County in New Jersey, USA. These places may have contributed to the spread and usage of the surname in different regions.
Another noteworthy individual with the surname Bergen was the American actress Candice Bergen (born 1946), known for her roles in films such as "The Sand Pebbles" and the TV series "Murphy Brown."
While the surname Bergen has Dutch origins, it has been adopted and used by individuals across various countries and cultures over the centuries, with different spellings and variations emerging.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bergen
Among Census respondents with the surname Bergen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Bergen 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 Bergen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.4% · 5,030
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 238
- Two or more races2.3% · 131
- Black or African American2.0% · 110
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.3% · 71
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 45
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bergen
Bergen 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
#5,711
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,074
+214 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 2.06
Rank movement Down 252 places
2020
#5,910
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,625
-449 bearers (-7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.88
Rank movement Down 199 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,459 | 5,860 | 2.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,711 | 6,074 | 2.06 | +214 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 252 places |
| 2020 | #5,910 | 5,625 | 1.88 | -449 bearers (-7.4%) | Down 199 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 Bergen 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 | #5,711 | #5,910 | -3.5% |
| Count | 6,074 | 5,625 | -7.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.06 | 1.88 | -8.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bergen bearers went from 6,074 to 5,625 (-7.4% change). The surname moved down 199 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,711 to #5,910.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Bergen
FAQ
Bergen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bergen?
Name Census estimates that about 6,450 living Americans carry the surname Bergen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 53,140 residents.
How common is Bergen?
Bergen ranks #5,910 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.88 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,625 people with the surname Bergen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,450), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.88 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Bergen.
Has Bergen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bergen went from 6,074 recorded bearers to 5,625. That is a decrease of 449 (-7.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,711 to #5,910.
What does the Census say about the background of Bergen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bergen, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.2%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Bergen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.4% (5,030 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bergen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.4%), Hispanic (4.2%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Bergen (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 Bergen mean?
A habitational surname referring to people from any of several places named Bergen, meaning "mountains" or "hills." 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 Bergen (1.88 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 Bergen?
You can see how many people have the surname Bergen on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.