2000
#3,440
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,509
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.52
Uncommon Last name
Johansen
Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning "son of Johan" (a variant of John).
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,921 Americans carry the last name Johansen. That puts it at #3,635 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.19 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,385 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Johansen 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 Johansen with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 31,385
Census rank
#3,635
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.5K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,524 bearers of the surname Johansen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.19 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3635th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Johansen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Johansen
The surname Johansen is of Scandinavian origin, primarily found in Denmark and Norway. It is a patronymic surname, meaning it is derived from a given name and the suffix "-sen" which denotes "son of." The name can be traced back to the 11th century when it was formed from the medieval Danish name Johan, itself derived from the Hebrew name Yohanan, meaning "Yahweh is gracious."
In its earliest known form, the surname was spelled "Johanssøn" in Danish and "Johannsson" in Norwegian. These spellings reflect the Nordic languages' use of double consonants and the letter "ø" (a vowel sound similar to the English "u" in "burn"). The spelling "Johansen" emerged later as the name spread and was influenced by German orthographic conventions.
The name is found in several medieval records, including the Danish Census Book of 1645, which lists several individuals with the surname Johansen living in various parts of Denmark. One notable early bearer of the name was Nils Johansen, a Norwegian explorer who is believed to have been the first European to set foot in Antarctica in the early 17th century.
In the 18th century, the Johansen name gained prominence with the birth of the Norwegian mathematician and cartographer Søren Johansen (1730-1804), who was instrumental in mapping the coastlines of Norway and parts of Greenland. Another notable figure was the Danish politician and writer Jens Johansen (1795-1875), who served as a member of the Danish parliament and published several works on political theory.
The 19th century saw the rise of several prominent Johansens, including the Norwegian painter Christian Johansen (1832-1917), whose landscapes and seascapes captured the rugged beauty of Norway's fjords and mountains. Another notable figure was the Danish explorer Frits Johansen (1882-1933), who led several expeditions to Greenland and was among the first to explore the interior of the island.
In the 20th century, the Johansen name gained international recognition with the accomplishments of the Norwegian explorer Hjalmar Johansen (1867-1913), who accompanied Fridtjof Nansen on his famous expedition to the North Pole in 1893-1896. Another notable figure was the Danish film director Bille Johansen (1915-2007), whose movies explored themes of love, loss, and the human condition.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Johansen
Among Census respondents with the surname Johansen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Johansen 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 Johansen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.0% · 8,569
- Hispanic or Latino4.3% · 407
- Two or more races3.1% · 297
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 130
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 65
- Black or African American0.6% · 56
Timeline
Historical Census data for Johansen
Johansen 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
#3,619
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,815
+306 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 3.33
Rank movement Down 179 places
2020
#3,635
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,524
-291 bearers (-3.0%)
Per 100,000 3.19
Rank movement Down 16 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,440 | 9,509 | 3.52 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,619 | 9,815 | 3.33 | +306 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 179 places |
| 2020 | #3,635 | 9,524 | 3.19 | -291 bearers (-3.0%) | Down 16 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 Johansen 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 | #3,619 | #3,635 | -0.4% |
| Count | 9,815 | 9,524 | -3.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.33 | 3.19 | -4.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Johansen bearers went from 9,815 to 9,524 (-3.0% change). The surname moved down 16 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,619 to #3,635.
FAQ
Johansen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Johansen?
Name Census estimates that about 10,921 living Americans carry the surname Johansen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,385 residents.
How common is Johansen?
Johansen ranks #3,635 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.19 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 9,524 people with the surname Johansen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,921), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.19 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.19 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 Johansen.
Has Johansen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Johansen went from 9,815 recorded bearers to 9,524. That is a decrease of 291 (-3.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,619 to #3,635.
What does the Census say about the background of Johansen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Johansen, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.3%) 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 Johansen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.0% (8,569 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Johansen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.0%), Hispanic (4.3%), 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 Johansen (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 Johansen mean?
Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning "son of Johan" (a variant of John). 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 Johansen (3.19 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 Johansen?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.