2000
#11,100
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,625
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.97
Rare Last name
Erikson
Son of Erik, a patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,868 Americans carry the last name Erikson. That puts it at #11,950 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 119,510 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Erikson 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
2.9K
1 in 119,510
Census rank
#11,950
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,501 bearers of the surname Erikson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11950th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Erikson, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Erikson
The surname Erikson originates from Scandinavia, particularly Sweden and Norway, and can be traced back to the Viking Age (793-1066 AD). It is a patronymic surname, which means it was derived from the name of a father or ancestor.
In this case, Erikson literally means "son of Erik." Erik is an Old Norse name that means "eternal ruler" or "ever-powerful." It was a popular name among the Vikings and was borne by many Norse rulers and warriors.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Erikson can be found in the Icelandic Sagas, which were written in the 13th and 14th centuries. These sagas often mentioned individuals with patronymic surnames like Erikson.
In the Middle Ages, as the use of surnames became more widespread, the name Erikson was adopted by families across Scandinavia. It was particularly common in areas with strong Viking heritage, such as the coastal regions of Sweden and Norway.
One notable historical figure with the surname Erikson was Leif Erikson (c. 970-1020), the Norse explorer credited with being the first European to reach North America, nearly 500 years before Christopher Columbus. He was the son of Erik the Red, who established the first Norse settlement in Greenland.
Another famous Erikson was Nils Erikson (1802-1870), a Swedish-American pioneer and one of the founders of the city of Sheboygan, Wisconsin. He was among the first Swedish immigrants to settle in the United States.
In Norway, the painter Theodor Erikson (1844-1914) was a prominent figure in the National Romantic movement and is known for his landscapes and depictions of rural life.
Erik Erikson (1902-1994), a German-born American developmental psychologist and psychoanalyst, was also a notable bearer of the surname. He is best known for his theory of psychosocial development and the concept of the "identity crisis."
Lastly, Leif Erikson (1911-1986), a Swedish-American actor and singer, had a successful career in Hollywood during the 1940s and 1950s, appearing in numerous films and television shows.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Erikson
Among Census respondents with the surname Erikson, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Erikson 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 Erikson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.7% · 2,294
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 84
- Two or more races2.7% · 68
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 28
- Black or African American0.8% · 19
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Erikson
Erikson 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
#11,882
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,635
+10 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 782 places
2020
#11,950
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,501
-134 bearers (-5.1%)
Per 100,000 0.84
Rank movement Down 68 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,100 | 2,625 | 0.97 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,882 | 2,635 | 0.89 | +10 bearers (+0.4%) | Down 782 places |
| 2020 | #11,950 | 2,501 | 0.84 | -134 bearers (-5.1%) | Down 68 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 Erikson 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 | #11,882 | #11,950 | -0.6% |
| Count | 2,635 | 2,501 | -5.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.84 | -6.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Erikson bearers went from 2,635 to 2,501 (-5.1% change). The surname moved down 68 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,882 to #11,950.
FAQ
Erikson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Erikson?
Name Census estimates that about 2,868 living Americans carry the surname Erikson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 119,510 residents.
How common is Erikson?
Erikson ranks #11,950 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.84 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,501 people with the surname Erikson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,868), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.84 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.84 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Erikson.
Has Erikson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Erikson went from 2,635 recorded bearers to 2,501. That is a decrease of 134 (-5.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,882 to #11,950.
What does the Census say about the background of Erikson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Erikson, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Erikson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.7% (2,294 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Erikson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.7%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Erikson (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 Erikson mean?
Son of Erik, a patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin. 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 Erikson (0.84 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 common is the surname Erikson?
Find out how many Americans have the surname Erikson on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.