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

Classen, 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 Classen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Classen in America

Classen is the 15418th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Classen surname appeared 1,900 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Classen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Classen 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 Classen

The surname Classen is of German origin, derived from the German word "Klasse" which means "class" or "rank." The name likely originated during the Middle Ages in Germany, possibly referring to a person's social standing or occupation.

The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 14th century in various regions of Germany, such as Bavaria and Saxony. Some of the earliest spellings include Classen, Clasen, and Klassen.

In the 16th century, the name appears in historical records from the city of Hamburg, suggesting its presence in northern Germany. One notable figure was Johann Classen, a merchant and alderman who lived in Hamburg during the late 16th century.

As the name spread across Germany, it also found its way into other areas of Europe, including the Netherlands and Scandinavia. In the Netherlands, the name was sometimes spelled as "Classen" or "Klasen."

During the 19th century, many Germans bearing the surname Classen immigrated to the United States, bringing the name to North America. One notable American with this surname was Benjamin Franklin Classen, a prominent businessman and philanthropist born in 1887 in Oklahoma City.

Other notable individuals with the surname Classen include Johann Classen, a German painter and engraver from the 17th century, and Otto Classen, a German-American architect and builder who lived in the late 19th and early 20th centuries.

While the surname Classen may have originally referred to social status, over time it became a common surname throughout Germany and other parts of Europe, as well as in the United States, where it was carried by immigrants from various regions of Germany.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Classen

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

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

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

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