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

Bolin, 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 Bolin surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bolin in America

Bolin is the 2783rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bolin surname appeared 12,962 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 4 people would have the surname Bolin.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bolin 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 Bolin

The surname Bolin has its origins in Sweden, where it first appeared in the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old Norse word "boli," which meant a small farmstead or dwelling. The earliest recorded instance of the name is found in a Swedish parish record from 1567, which mentions a "Bolin Eriksson" living in the village of Torsåker.

Another possible origin of the name Bolin is that it may have been a descriptive surname given to someone who lived near a large boulder or rock formation, as the Swedish word "bole" can also refer to a rocky outcrop or boulder. This theory is supported by the fact that many early Swedish surnames were based on geographic features or occupations.

In the 17th century, the Bolin surname began to appear in other parts of Scandinavia, particularly in Norway and Denmark. One notable bearer of the name was Anders Bolin (1624-1688), a Swedish military officer who served as the governor of the Swedish colony of New Sweden (present-day Delaware) from 1654 to 1655.

During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Bolin name spread throughout Europe as Swedish and Norwegian immigrants settled in various countries. One prominent individual with this surname was Johan Bolin (1739-1808), a Swedish artist and engraver who was appointed as the court painter to King Gustav III of Sweden.

In the United States, the Bolin surname can be traced back to the late 17th century, when Swedish immigrants began arriving in the Delaware Valley region. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name is that of Nils Bolin, who was born in Sweden in 1693 and later settled in Philadelphia.

Other notable individuals with the surname Bolin include:

1. Torsten Bolin (1911-1998), a Swedish actor and director.
2. Jane Bolin (1908-2007), the first African American woman to become a judge in the United States, appointed to the New York City Domestic Relations Court in 1939.
3. Juan Bolin (1517-1608), a Spanish painter and architect who worked in the Spanish Renaissance style.
4. Benjamin Bolin (1872-1938), an American politician who served as a U.S. Representative from Missouri.
5. Carl Bolin (1838-1897), a Swedish-American educator and author who founded the first Swedish-American newspaper in the United States, Hemlandet.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bolin

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

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 Bolin 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 Bolin 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 Bolin was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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