2000
#3,565
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,146
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.39
Uncommon Last name
Haugen
From a Norwegian place name meaning "hill pasture" or "mountain pasture," or from a farm named with this element.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,205 Americans carry the last name Haugen. That puts it at #3,877 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 33,587 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Haugen 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
10K
1 in 33,587
Census rank
#3,877
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.9K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,899 bearers of the surname Haugen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3877th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Haugen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Haugen
The surname Haugen originated in Norway during the Middle Ages. It is a topographic name derived from the Old Norse words "haugr," meaning hill or mound, and "eng," meaning meadow or pasture. Essentially, Haugen referred to a person who lived near a hill or mound in a meadow.
The name can be traced back to the Viking Age, with records indicating its presence in various parts of Norway. One of the earliest known references to the name appears in the Icelandic Landnámabók (Book of Settlements), which documents the Norse settlement of Iceland in the 9th and 10th centuries.
In the 13th century, a Norwegian nobleman named Håkon Håkonsson Haugen (c. 1204-1263) gained prominence as a trusted advisor to King Håkon IV of Norway. Håkon Haugen played a crucial role in establishing Norwegian sovereignty over Greenland and parts of Iceland.
Another notable figure was Ivar Haugen (c. 1350-1420), a wealthy Norwegian landowner and trader who gained significant influence in the region of Trondheim during the late Middle Ages. His descendants continued to hold prominent positions in the local community for several generations.
In the 16th century, the Haugen name appeared in various records across Norway, including the Diplomatorium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian diplomatic documents. One such record mentions a farmer named Tore Haugen from the village of Haugen in the Gudbrandsdalen valley, dated around 1520.
The name also has variations in spelling, such as Haugan, Haugen, and Haugane, reflecting regional linguistic differences within Norway. These variations often corresponded to specific geographical locations or local dialects.
Other notable individuals with the Haugen surname include:
1. Hans Haugen (c. 1590-1650), a prominent Norwegian merchant and ship owner active in the Baltic trade during the early 17th century.
2. Anna Haugen (1754-1832), a Norwegian folk poet and songwriter known for her traditional ballads and verses.
3. Nils Peder Haugen (1818-1895), a Norwegian-American pioneer and farmer who played a significant role in the early settlement of the Red River Valley in Minnesota.
4. Guri Haugen (1841-1921), a Norwegian-American writer and activist who advocated for women's rights and educational opportunities in the Midwest.
5. Peder Haugen (1865-1935), a Norwegian-American author and journalist who wrote extensively about Norwegian immigration and life in the United States.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Haugen
Among Census respondents with the surname Haugen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Haugen 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 Haugen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.8% · 8,168
- Two or more races3.3% · 291
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 247
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 83
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 80
- Black or African American0.3% · 30
Timeline
Historical Census data for Haugen
Haugen 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
#3,745
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,461
+315 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 3.21
Rank movement Down 180 places
2020
#3,877
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,899
-562 bearers (-5.9%)
Per 100,000 2.98
Rank movement Down 132 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,565 | 9,146 | 3.39 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,745 | 9,461 | 3.21 | +315 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 180 places |
| 2020 | #3,877 | 8,899 | 2.98 | -562 bearers (-5.9%) | Down 132 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 Haugen 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 | #3,745 | #3,877 | -3.5% |
| Count | 9,461 | 8,899 | -5.9% |
| Per 100K | 3.21 | 2.98 | -7.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Haugen bearers went from 9,461 to 8,899 (-5.9% change). The surname moved down 132 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,745 to #3,877.
FAQ
Haugen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Haugen?
Name Census estimates that about 10,205 living Americans carry the surname Haugen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 33,587 residents.
How common is Haugen?
Haugen ranks #3,877 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.98 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,899 people with the surname Haugen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,205), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.98 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Haugen.
Has Haugen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Haugen went from 9,461 recorded bearers to 8,899. That is a decrease of 562 (-5.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,745 to #3,877.
What does the Census say about the background of Haugen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Haugen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Haugen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.8% (8,168 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Haugen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.8%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.8%). 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 Haugen (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 Haugen mean?
From a Norwegian place name meaning "hill pasture" or "mountain pasture," or from a farm named with this element. 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 Haugen (2.98 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 Haugen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.