2000
#9,200
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,260
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.21
Rare Last name
Halvorsen
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, derived from the Old Norse personal name "Hallvarðr," meaning "rock guardian."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,844 Americans carry the last name Halvorsen. That puts it at #9,320 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.12 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 89,166 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Halvorsen 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Halvorsen with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.8K
1 in 89,166
Census rank
#9,320
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,352 bearers of the surname Halvorsen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.12 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9320th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Halvorsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Halvorsen
The surname Halvorsen originated in Norway, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the 11th century. The name is a patronymic, derived from the Old Norse name Hallvard, which is a compound of the elements "hallr" meaning "rock" and "varðr" meaning "guardian." It essentially translates to "rock guardian." The name Hallvard was a popular name among the Vikings, and it is believed that Halvorsen was originally used to indicate a person who was the son of Hallvard.
The Halvorsen name can be found in several historical records from Norway, including the Landnåmabók, a medieval Icelandic manuscript that chronicles the settlement of Iceland. One of the earliest known individuals with the name was Hallvard Halvorsen, a Norwegian chieftain who lived in the late 10th century.
In the 13th century, a man named Halvor Halvorsen is mentioned in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian diplomas and charters. He was a landowner and is recorded as having donated land to the Church.
The name Halvorsen has also been associated with various place names in Norway, such as Halvorsbygd and Halvorshagen, which are believed to have derived their names from early settlers with the Halvorsen surname.
One notable individual with the Halvorsen name was Halvor Halvorsen (1887-1972), a Norwegian journalist and writer who worked for several prominent Norwegian newspapers and published several books on Norwegian history and culture.
Another famous Halvorsen was Olav Halvorsen (1902-1978), a Norwegian composer and conductor who is best known for his orchestral works and concertos. He served as the principal conductor of the Bergen Philharmonic Orchestra from 1950 to 1963.
In the field of sports, Odd Halvorsen (1926-2004) was a Norwegian football player and manager who played for the Norwegian national team and later managed several Norwegian clubs, including Rosenborg BK.
Elsa Halvorsen (1894-1973) was a Norwegian actress and singer who performed in numerous plays and musicals throughout her career, and was considered one of the leading actresses of her time in Norway.
Lastly, Bjørn Halvorsen (1943-2022) was a Norwegian politician who served as a member of the Storting, the Norwegian parliament, representing the Conservative Party from 1981 to 2005.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Halvorsen
Among Census respondents with the surname Halvorsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Halvorsen 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 Halvorsen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.5% · 3,033
- Hispanic or Latino4.4% · 149
- Two or more races3.1% · 105
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 40
- Black or African American0.4% · 13
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 12
Timeline
Historical Census data for Halvorsen
Halvorsen 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
#9,298
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,500
+240 bearers (+7.4%)
Per 100,000 1.19
Rank movement Down 98 places
2020
#9,320
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,352
-148 bearers (-4.2%)
Per 100,000 1.12
Rank movement Down 22 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,200 | 3,260 | 1.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #9,298 | 3,500 | 1.19 | +240 bearers (+7.4%) | Down 98 places |
| 2020 | #9,320 | 3,352 | 1.12 | -148 bearers (-4.2%) | Down 22 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 Halvorsen 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 | #9,298 | #9,320 | -0.2% |
| Count | 3,500 | 3,352 | -4.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.19 | 1.12 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Halvorsen bearers went from 3,500 to 3,352 (-4.2% change). The surname moved down 22 positions in the national ranking, going from #9,298 to #9,320.
FAQ
Halvorsen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Halvorsen?
Name Census estimates that about 3,844 living Americans carry the surname Halvorsen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 89,166 residents.
How common is Halvorsen?
Halvorsen ranks #9,320 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.12 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 3,352 people with the surname Halvorsen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,844), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.12 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.12 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 Halvorsen.
Has Halvorsen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Halvorsen went from 3,500 recorded bearers to 3,352. That is a decrease of 148 (-4.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #9,298 to #9,320.
What does the Census say about the background of Halvorsen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Halvorsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.4%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Halvorsen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.5% (3,033 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Halvorsen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.5%), Hispanic (4.4%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Halvorsen (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 Halvorsen mean?
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, derived from the Old Norse personal name "Hallvarðr," meaning "rock guardian." 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 Halvorsen (1.12 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 share the surname Halvorsen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.