2000
#123,314
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 129
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Gronbeck
A Swedish surname derived from a habitational name for someone living near an evergreen tree.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 132 Americans carry the last name Gronbeck. That puts it at #145,757 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,596,624 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gronbeck 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
132
1 in 2,596,624
Census rank
#145,757
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
115
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 115 bearers of the surname Gronbeck in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 145757th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gronbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gronbeck
The surname Gronbeck has its origins in Sweden, where it first emerged in the 16th century. It is derived from the Old Swedish words "grön" meaning green, and "bäck" meaning stream or brook, suggesting that the name likely referred to someone who lived near a green stream or brook.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Gronbeck name can be found in the Swedish church records from the parish of Stora Tuna in Dalarna, where a man named Erik Gronbeck was mentioned in the year 1587. This same parish also recorded the birth of Anders Gronbeck in 1612.
During the 17th century, the Gronbeck name began to spread beyond Sweden, with some members of the family migrating to neighboring countries such as Finland and Norway. In Finland, a notable bearer of the name was Carl Gustaf Gronbeck, a military officer and politician who lived from 1784 to 1862.
In the 19th century, the Gronbeck name made its way to the United States, with immigrants from Sweden and other Scandinavian countries settling in various parts of the country. One of the earliest recorded examples of the name in the US is that of Johan Gronbeck, who was born in Sweden in 1823 and later immigrated to Minnesota, where he worked as a farmer.
Another notable individual with the Gronbeck surname was Adolph Gronbeck, a Swedish-American artist and illustrator who lived from 1854 to 1932. He is best known for his paintings depicting scenes of rural life in Sweden.
Other individuals of historical significance who bore the Gronbeck name include Nils Gronbeck, a Swedish theologian and author who lived from 1672 to 1734, and Johan Gronbeck, a Swedish military officer and engineer who served in the Thirty Years' War during the 17th century.
While the Gronbeck surname is relatively uncommon, it has a rich history that can be traced back to its Swedish origins and the many individuals who have carried the name over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gronbeck
Among Census respondents with the surname Gronbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Gronbeck 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 Gronbeck surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.3% · 113
- Two or more races1.7% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gronbeck
Gronbeck 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
#132,206
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 128
-1 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,892 places
2020
#145,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
-13 bearers (-10.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,551 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #123,314 | 129 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #132,206 | 128 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 8,892 places |
| 2020 | #145,757 | 115 | 0.04 | -13 bearers (-10.2%) | Down 13,551 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 Gronbeck 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 | #132,206 | #145,757 | -10.2% |
| Count | 128 | 115 | -10.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -3.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gronbeck bearers went from 128 to 115 (-10.2% change). The surname moved down 13,551 positions in the national ranking, going from #132,206 to #145,757.
FAQ
Gronbeck surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gronbeck?
Name Census estimates that about 132 living Americans carry the surname Gronbeck. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,596,624 residents.
How common is Gronbeck?
Gronbeck ranks #145,757 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 115 people with the surname Gronbeck. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (132), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Gronbeck.
Has Gronbeck become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gronbeck went from 128 recorded bearers to 115. That is a decrease of 13 (-10.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #132,206 to #145,757.
What does the Census say about the background of Gronbeck?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gronbeck, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Gronbeck in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.3% (113 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gronbeck appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.3%), Two or More Races (1.7%). 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 Gronbeck (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 Gronbeck mean?
A Swedish surname derived from a habitational name for someone living near an evergreen tree. 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 Gronbeck (0.04 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 Gronbeck?
You can see how many people are called Gronbeck on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.