2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Boreson
A surname likely derived from an Old Norse personal name Bors combined with son, meaning "son of Bors."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Boreson. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Boreson 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Boreson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Boreson, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Boreson
The surname Boreson originated in Scandinavia, particularly in Norway and Sweden, during the medieval period. It is believed to have derived from the Old Norse words "boer" meaning "farmer" and "son," indicating that the name was initially given to the son of a farmer or someone who lived on a farmstead.
Boreson is a patronymic surname, which means it was formed by combining the father's given name with the word "son" to create a new surname. This naming convention was common in Scandinavian countries during the Middle Ages, as surnames were not yet hereditary and were often derived from occupation, location, or a person's relationship to their father.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Boreson can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of Norwegian diplomatic documents dating back to the 13th century. In this collection, there are references to individuals with the surname Boreson, indicating its use during that time period.
In the 15th century, the Boreson surname appeared in Swedish church records, particularly in the provinces of Dalarna and Värmland. This suggests that the name had spread to other parts of Scandinavia by that time.
Notable individuals with the surname Boreson include:
1. Nils Boreson (c. 1550 - 1620), a Swedish farmer and landowner from the Dalarna region, known for his contributions to local agriculture.
2. Brita Boreson (c. 1630 - 1702), a Norwegian woman from Bergen who was accused of witchcraft during the infamous Scandinavian witch trials.
3. Anders Boreson (1705 - 1778), a Swedish merchant and ship owner from Gothenburg, who played a significant role in the city's maritime trade.
4. Ingrid Boreson (1820 - 1895), a Norwegian immigrant to the United States, who settled in Wisconsin and became a prominent figure in the local Norwegian-American community.
5. Olaf Boreson (1846 - 1922), a Norwegian-American farmer and politician from Minnesota, who served as a state representative in the late 19th century.
Variations of the surname Boreson can be found throughout Scandinavia, including Boresen, Börjeson, and Börjesson, reflecting the regional dialects and spelling conventions of different areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Boreson
Among Census respondents with the surname Boreson, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Boreson 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 Boreson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.0% · 100
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Boreson
Boreson 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
#158,432
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-22 bearers (-17.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 31,246 places
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 3,677 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #158,432 | 102 | 0.03 | -22 bearers (-17.7%) | Down 31,246 places |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 3,677 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 Boreson 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 | #158,432 | #154,755 | 2.3% |
| Count | 102 | 102 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 13.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Boreson bearers went from 102 to 102 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 3,677 positions in the national ranking, going from #158,432 to #154,755.
FAQ
Boreson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Boreson?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Boreson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Boreson?
Boreson ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Boreson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Boreson.
Has Boreson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Boreson went from 102 recorded bearers to 102. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #158,432 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Boreson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Boreson, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Boreson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.0% (100 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Boreson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.0%), Hispanic (2.0%). 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 Boreson (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 Boreson mean?
A surname likely derived from an Old Norse personal name Bors combined with son, meaning "son of Bors." 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 Boreson (0.03 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 Americans have the surname Boreson?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.