2000
#127,948
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 123
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Gulbronson
A Scandinavian surname likely derived from a place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 126 Americans carry the last name Gulbronson. That puts it at #149,446 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,720,273 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gulbronson 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
126
1 in 2,720,273
Census rank
#149,446
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
110
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 110 bearers of the surname Gulbronson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 149446th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gulbronson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gulbronson
The surname Gulbronson has its origins in Scandinavia, particularly in the regions of Norway and Sweden. The name can be traced back to the early medieval period, around the 10th to 12th centuries.
The first part of the name, "Gul," is derived from the Old Norse word "gulr," meaning "yellow" or "golden." This could suggest that the name initially referred to a person with yellow or golden hair or complexion. The second part, "bronson," is thought to have originated from the Old Norse word "brunnr," meaning "spring" or "well," indicating a possible connection to a geographic location near a water source.
In the 13th century, there are records of the name Gulbronson appearing in the Icelandic Sagas, which were written accounts of the lives and deeds of Scandinavian families during the Viking Age. One notable figure from this period was Halldor Gulbronson, a wealthy landowner and chieftain who lived in western Iceland in the late 12th century.
As the Scandinavian population migrated and settled in various regions, the name Gulbronson underwent slight variations in spelling and pronunciation. In Norway, it was sometimes written as "Gulbrandson" or "Gulbrandssen," while in Sweden, it appeared as "Gulbransson" or "Gulbranson."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Gulbronson name can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of Norwegian medieval documents dating back to the 12th century. The document mentions a man named Olaf Gulbronson, who was a landowner in the region of Trøndelag, Norway, in the late 1100s.
In the 15th century, a notable figure with the name Gulbronson was Ingrid Gulbronson, a wealthy Norwegian noblewoman who owned vast estates in the Østerdalen valley. She was known for her philanthropic efforts and support of local churches and monasteries.
During the 16th century, the Gulbronson name appeared in Sweden, where a family of that name held prominent positions in the Swedish military and government. One such individual was Erik Gulbronson, a Swedish military officer who served in the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) and later became a governor in the province of Småland.
In the 17th century, a Swedish artist named Carl Gulbronson (1625-1698) gained recognition for his intricate wood carvings and decorative works adorning churches and noble residences in Stockholm and other parts of Sweden.
As the centuries progressed, the Gulbronson name continued to be found in various parts of Scandinavia, with individuals bearing this surname making contributions in fields such as academia, literature, and commerce.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gulbronson
Among Census respondents with the surname Gulbronson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Gulbronson 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 Gulbronson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.0% · 88
- Two or more races9.1% · 10
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 3
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gulbronson
Gulbronson 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
-5 bearers (-4.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 13,192 places
2020
#149,446
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
-8 bearers (-6.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 8,306 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,948 | 123 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.1%) | Down 13,192 places |
| 2020 | #149,446 | 110 | 0.04 | -8 bearers (-6.8%) | Down 8,306 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 Gulbronson 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 | #141,140 | #149,446 | -5.9% |
| Count | 118 | 110 | -6.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -8.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gulbronson bearers went from 118 to 110 (-6.8% change). The surname moved down 8,306 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #149,446.
FAQ
Gulbronson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gulbronson?
Name Census estimates that about 126 living Americans carry the surname Gulbronson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,720,273 residents.
How common is Gulbronson?
Gulbronson ranks #149,446 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 110 people with the surname Gulbronson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (126), 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 Gulbronson.
Has Gulbronson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gulbronson went from 118 recorded bearers to 110. That is a decrease of 8 (-6.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #149,446.
What does the Census say about the background of Gulbronson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gulbronson, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Hispanic (4.5%). 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 Gulbronson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.0% (88 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gulbronson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.0%), Two or More Races (9.1%), Hispanic (4.5%). 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 Gulbronson (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 Gulbronson mean?
A Scandinavian surname likely derived from a place name. 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 Gulbronson (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 Gulbronson?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how common the surname Gulbronson is at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.