2000
#11,774
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,436
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.90
Rare Last name
Iversen
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, meaning "son of Iver."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,828 Americans carry the last name Iversen. That puts it at #12,074 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 121,200 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Iversen 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 Iversen with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.8K
1 in 121,200
Census rank
#12,074
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,466 bearers of the surname Iversen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12074th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Iversen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Iversen
The surname Iversen is of Danish origin, with roots that can be traced back to the 15th century. It is a patronymic name, derived from the personal name Iver, which itself is a Danish form of the Old Norse name Ívarr. The name Ívarr is composed of the elements "yr" meaning yew tree and "arr" meaning warrior or archer.
The earliest recorded instances of the Iversen surname can be found in Danish church records and census documents from the late 15th and early 16th centuries. These records often list individuals with the name spelled as Iverssen or Iversøn, reflecting the regional variations in spelling and pronunciation at the time.
One notable early bearer of the Iversen name was Hans Iversen, a Danish merchant and ship owner who lived in the late 16th century. He is mentioned in several historical documents related to trade and maritime activities in the city of Copenhagen.
In the 17th century, the Iversen surname appears in various records from the Danish-controlled regions of present-day northern Germany. For instance, Claus Iversen was a prominent landowner and farmer in the town of Husum, Schleswig-Holstein, in the mid-1600s.
The 19th century saw several individuals with the Iversen surname achieve recognition in various fields. Christen Iversen (1815-1888) was a Danish painter known for his landscapes and marine scenes. Jens Iversen Lange (1838-1917) was a Norwegian politician and prime minister of Norway from 1909 to 1910.
In the field of literature, Johannes Iversen (1895-1969) was a Danish poet and writer who gained acclaim for his lyrical works celebrating nature and rural life. Jens Iversen (1911-1985) was a Danish botanist and ecologist who made significant contributions to the study of plant communities and vegetation patterns.
Another notable bearer of the Iversen name was Morten Iversen (1919-2005), a Danish actor and theater director who had a prolific career spanning over six decades. He was widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the Danish theater scene of the 20th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Iversen
Among Census respondents with the surname Iversen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Iversen 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 Iversen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.0% · 2,245
- Hispanic or Latino3.9% · 97
- Two or more races3.4% · 83
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 11
- Black or African American0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Iversen
Iversen 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
#12,164
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,562
+126 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Down 390 places
2020
#12,074
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,466
-96 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Up 90 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,774 | 2,436 | 0.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,164 | 2,562 | 0.87 | +126 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 390 places |
| 2020 | #12,074 | 2,466 | 0.83 | -96 bearers (-3.7%) | Up 90 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 Iversen 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 | #12,164 | #12,074 | 0.7% |
| Count | 2,562 | 2,466 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.83 | -5.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Iversen bearers went from 2,562 to 2,466 (-3.7% change). The surname moved up 90 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,164 to #12,074.
FAQ
Iversen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Iversen?
Name Census estimates that about 2,828 living Americans carry the surname Iversen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 121,200 residents.
How common is Iversen?
Iversen ranks #12,074 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 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 2,466 people with the surname Iversen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,828), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 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 Iversen.
Has Iversen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Iversen went from 2,562 recorded bearers to 2,466. That is a decrease of 96 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,164 to #12,074.
What does the Census say about the background of Iversen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Iversen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.9%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Iversen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.0% (2,245 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Iversen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.0%), Hispanic (3.9%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Iversen (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 Iversen mean?
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, meaning "son of Iver." 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 Iversen (0.83 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 Iversen?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.