2000
#78,035
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 228
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Brogren
A Swedish surname derived from the Swedish word "brogränd" meaning a small path or alley.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 288 Americans carry the last name Brogren. That puts it at #81,311 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,190,119 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brogren 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
288
1 in 1,190,119
Census rank
#81,311
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
251
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 251 bearers of the surname Brogren in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 81311th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogren, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brogren
The surname Brogren originated in Sweden during the 18th century. It is derived from the Swedish words 'bro' meaning bridge and 'gren' meaning branch, suggesting an ancestral connection to someone who lived near a bridge or forked road.
Brogren is a locational surname, indicating that the earliest bearers likely resided in a place with a bridge or forked road. The name may have evolved from older spellings such as Brogren, Brogrenn, or Brogränn.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Brogren appears in the Swedish church records of Västergötland in the late 1700s. These records document the births, marriages, and deaths of individuals with the Brogren surname in various parishes throughout the region.
Notable individuals with the surname Brogren include:
1. Johan Brogren (1774-1842), a Swedish merchant and businessman from Gothenburg who established a successful trading company in the early 19th century.
2. Karin Brogren (1829-1901), a Swedish author and activist who advocated for women's rights and education reform in the late 19th century.
3. Erik Brogren (1892-1968), a Swedish architect known for his work on public buildings and residential projects in Stockholm during the mid-20th century.
4. Ingrid Brogren (1923-2004), a Swedish opera singer who performed leading roles with the Royal Swedish Opera in the 1950s and 1960s.
5. Sven Brogren (1937-2018), a Swedish painter and sculptor whose works explored abstract expressionism and were exhibited internationally throughout his career.
While the Brogren surname is predominantly Swedish in origin, it has likely spread to other parts of the world through migration and intermarriage over the centuries. However, its roots can be traced back to the bridges and forked roads of 18th-century Sweden.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brogren
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogren, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Brogren 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 Brogren surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.0% · 241
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 5
- Two or more races1.6% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brogren
Brogren 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
#78,821
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 242
+14 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 786 places
2020
#81,311
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 251
+9 bearers (+3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 2,490 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #78,035 | 228 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #78,821 | 242 | 0.08 | +14 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 786 places |
| 2020 | #81,311 | 251 | 0.08 | +9 bearers (+3.7%) | Down 2,490 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 Brogren 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 | #78,821 | #81,311 | -3.2% |
| Count | 242 | 251 | 3.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.08 | 5.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brogren bearers went from 242 to 251 (+3.7% change). The surname moved down 2,490 positions in the national ranking, going from #78,821 to #81,311.
FAQ
Brogren surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brogren?
Name Census estimates that about 288 living Americans carry the surname Brogren. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,190,119 residents.
How common is Brogren?
Brogren ranks #81,311 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 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 251 people with the surname Brogren. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (288), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 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 Brogren.
Has Brogren become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brogren went from 242 recorded bearers to 251. That is an increase of 9 (+3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #78,821 to #81,311.
What does the Census say about the background of Brogren?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brogren, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.0%) and Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Brogren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.0% (241 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brogren appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.0%), Hispanic (2.0%), Two or More Races (1.6%). 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 Brogren (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 Brogren mean?
A Swedish surname derived from the Swedish word "brogränd" meaning a small path or alley. 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 Brogren (0.08 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 have the last name Brogren?
You can see how many people have the surname Brogren on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.