2000
#138,741
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Hoidal
A Norwegian surname potentially derived from a farm or place name.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Hoidal. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Hoidal 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
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Hoidal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoidal, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.2%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Hoidal
The surname HOIDAL is believed to have originated in Norway, with its earliest recorded use dating back to the late 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old Norse words "haugr," meaning "hill" or "mound," and "dalr," meaning "valley." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a valley near a hill or mound.
One of the earliest known bearers of the HOIDAL name was Olav Hoidal, who was born in the village of Seljord, Norway, in 1612. Records indicate that he was a farmer and landowner in the region. Another early HOIDAL was Ingrid Hoidal, born in 1643 in the town of Skien, Norway. She was the daughter of a local merchant.
In the 18th century, the HOIDAL name appears in several church records and land registries across southern Norway, particularly in the regions of Telemark and Vestfold. This indicates that the name had become more widespread during this period.
One notable figure was Hans Hoidal, a Norwegian military officer who served in the Dano-Norwegian Army during the Napoleonic Wars. Born in 1787 in Porsgrunn, Norway, he rose to the rank of Major and participated in several campaigns against the Swedish forces.
Another historical figure was Inger Hoidal, a Norwegian folk artist and embroiderer who lived in the early 19th century. She was renowned for her intricate needlework and her pieces are now housed in several museums across Norway.
In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, as Norwegian immigration to the United States increased, the HOIDAL name began to appear in North American records. One such example is Olav Hoidal, who was born in 1867 in Skien, Norway, and later immigrated to Minnesota in the United States, where he worked as a farmer.
Another notable HOIDAL was Ingrid Hoidal, a Norwegian-American author and journalist who was born in 1896 in Halden, Norway, but later moved to New York City. She wrote several books and articles about Norwegian culture and immigration experiences.
Throughout its history, the HOIDAL surname has maintained a strong connection to its Norwegian roots, with many bearers of the name tracing their ancestry back to various regions of southern Norway.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Hoidal
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoidal, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.2%) and Two or More Races (5.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Hoidal 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 Hoidal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White78.1% · 89
- Hispanic or Latino13.2% · 15
- Two or more races5.3% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Hoidal
Hoidal 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
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
-3 bearers (-2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 12,791 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
+6 bearers (+5.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,037 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #138,741 | 111 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | -3 bearers (-2.7%) | Down 12,791 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | +6 bearers (+5.6%) | Up 5,037 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 Hoidal 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 | #151,532 | #146,495 | 3.3% |
| Count | 108 | 114 | 5.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Hoidal bearers went from 108 to 114 (+5.6% change). The surname moved up 5,037 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #146,495.
FAQ
Hoidal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Hoidal?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Hoidal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Hoidal?
Hoidal ranks #146,495 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 114 people with the surname Hoidal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), 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 Hoidal.
Has Hoidal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Hoidal went from 108 recorded bearers to 114. That is an increase of 6 (+5.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Hoidal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Hoidal, the largest self-reported group is White at 78.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (13.2%) and Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Hoidal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.1% (89 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Hoidal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (78.1%), Hispanic (13.2%), Two or More Races (5.3%). 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 Hoidal (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 Hoidal mean?
A Norwegian surname potentially derived from a farm or 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 Hoidal (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 Hoidal?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Hoidal, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.