2000
#14,771
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,844
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.68
Rare Last name
Fossum
A Norwegian surname referring to a waterfall or stream.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,998 Americans carry the last name Fossum. That puts it at #16,072 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.58 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 171,549 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fossum 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
2.0K
1 in 171,549
Census rank
#16,072
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,742 bearers of the surname Fossum in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.58 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 16072nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fossum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fossum
The surname Fossum is of Norwegian origin, with its earliest known roots tracing back to the 17th century. The name is believed to be derived from the Old Norse word "foss," which translates to "waterfall," combined with the suffix "-um," indicating a place or location.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Fossum can be found in the parish records of Ringerike, Norway, where a family with this surname resided in the late 1600s. The name was likely associated with a particular farm or settlement situated near a waterfall or a river with a strong current.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Fossum name appeared in various historical documents and records across Norway, particularly in the regions of Oppland, Buskerud, and Telemark. Some notable individuals bearing this surname include Hans Olsen Fossum (1733-1804), a farmer and landowner in Vestre Toten, and Guri Fossum (1788-1865), a well-known folk artist from Ringerike.
As Norwegian immigration to North America increased in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the Fossum surname was carried across the Atlantic by numerous families seeking new opportunities. One of the earliest recorded instances of the name in the United States can be found in the 1880 census, where a family with the surname Fossum was recorded as residing in Minnesota.
Another notable individual with the Fossum surname was Johan Fossum (1868-1936), a Norwegian-American architect who designed several prominent buildings in Minneapolis, including the Leamington Hotel and the Masonic Temple.
In more recent times, the name Fossum has been associated with several accomplished individuals, such as Erik Fossum (born 1957), a Norwegian engineer and inventor of the CMOS active pixel sensor technology used in modern digital cameras, and Knut Fossum (1927-2021), a Norwegian theologian and author.
While the Fossum surname may not be as widely recognized as some other Norwegian names, it holds a rich history and has been carried by individuals who have made significant contributions to various fields throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fossum
Among Census respondents with the surname Fossum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Fossum 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 Fossum surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.9% · 1,618
- Two or more races2.8% · 48
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 43
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 15
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 12
- Black or African American0.3% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fossum
Fossum 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
#15,743
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,852
+8 bearers (+0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.63
Rank movement Down 972 places
2020
#16,072
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,742
-110 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 0.58
Rank movement Down 329 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,771 | 1,844 | 0.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,743 | 1,852 | 0.63 | +8 bearers (+0.4%) | Down 972 places |
| 2020 | #16,072 | 1,742 | 0.58 | -110 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 329 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 Fossum 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 | #15,743 | #16,072 | -2.1% |
| Count | 1,852 | 1,742 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.63 | 0.58 | -7.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fossum bearers went from 1,852 to 1,742 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 329 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,743 to #16,072.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fossum
FAQ
Fossum surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fossum?
Name Census estimates that about 1,998 living Americans carry the surname Fossum. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 171,549 residents.
How common is Fossum?
Fossum ranks #16,072 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.58 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 1,742 people with the surname Fossum. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,998), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.58 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.58 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 Fossum.
Has Fossum become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fossum went from 1,852 recorded bearers to 1,742. That is a decrease of 110 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #15,743 to #16,072.
What does the Census say about the background of Fossum?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fossum, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Fossum in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.9% (1,618 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fossum appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.9%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Fossum (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 Fossum mean?
A Norwegian surname referring to a waterfall or stream. 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 Fossum (0.58 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 Fossum?
See how many people have the last name Fossum on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.