2000
#1,650
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 19,906
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.38
Uncommon Last name
Jorgensen
Son of Jørgen, a Danish and Norwegian form of George, meaning "farmer" or "earth-worker."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 23,589 Americans carry the last name Jorgensen. That puts it at #1,707 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 6.88 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,530 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Jorgensen 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 Jorgensen with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,530
Census rank
#1,707
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
6.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 20,571 bearers of the surname Jorgensen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 6.88 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1707th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Jorgensen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Jorgensen
The surname Jorgensen is of Danish origin, originating in the medieval period. It is a patronymic name, derived from the personal name "Jorgen", which was a common Danish form of the name George. Jorgen itself comes from the Greek name "Georgios", meaning "farmer" or "earth-worker".
The earliest recorded instances of the name Jorgensen date back to the 13th century in Denmark. It was often written as "Jørgensen" in its original Danish spelling. The name likely emerged as a way to distinguish the son of someone named Jorgen from others with the same first name.
Historical records show that the Jorgensen name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Jutland and Zealand in Denmark during the Middle Ages. It was also found in areas of modern-day Germany and Sweden that had Danish influence or settlements at the time.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Jorgensen was Jens Jorgensen, a Danish merchant who lived in the late 14th century. He was recorded in documents related to trade between Denmark and the Hanseatic League cities in northern Germany.
Another notable early bearer of the name was Niels Jorgensen, a Danish farmer and landowner who lived in the 15th century. He was mentioned in records pertaining to land ownership and taxation in the village of Svendborg on the island of Funen.
In the 16th century, the explorer Jørgen Jørgensen, also known as Jorge Jorgensen, was born in Denmark around 1510. He later settled in the Spanish colony of Peru and became one of the first Europeans to explore the Amazon River.
The Danish astronomer Jorgen Jorgensen Ibsen, born in 1701, was another prominent individual with the surname. He made significant contributions to the study of celestial mechanics and is remembered for his work on the calculation of comet orbits.
Finally, Hans Christian Jorgensen, born in 1836, was a notable Danish painter and illustrator during the Romantic period. He is known for his landscapes and scenes depicting rural life in Denmark.
These are just a few examples of the many individuals throughout history who have borne the surname Jorgensen, reflecting its long-standing Danish origins and presence across various fields and walks of life.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Jorgensen
Among Census respondents with the surname Jorgensen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Jorgensen 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 Jorgensen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.0% · 18,935
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 765
- Two or more races2.5% · 509
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 181
- Black or African American0.5% · 99
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 82
Timeline
Historical Census data for Jorgensen
Jorgensen 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
#1,728
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,731
+825 bearers (+4.1%)
Per 100,000 7.03
Rank movement Down 78 places
2020
#1,707
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 20,571
-160 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 6.88
Rank movement Up 21 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,650 | 19,906 | 7.38 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,728 | 20,731 | 7.03 | +825 bearers (+4.1%) | Down 78 places |
| 2020 | #1,707 | 20,571 | 6.88 | -160 bearers (-0.8%) | Up 21 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 Jorgensen 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 | #1,728 | #1,707 | 1.2% |
| Count | 20,731 | 20,571 | -0.8% |
| Per 100K | 7.03 | 6.88 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Jorgensen bearers went from 20,731 to 20,571 (-0.8% change). The surname moved up 21 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,728 to #1,707.
FAQ
Jorgensen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Jorgensen?
Name Census estimates that about 23,589 living Americans carry the surname Jorgensen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,530 residents.
How common is Jorgensen?
Jorgensen ranks #1,707 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 6.88 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 20,571 people with the surname Jorgensen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (23,589), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 6.88 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 6.88 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Jorgensen.
Has Jorgensen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Jorgensen went from 20,731 recorded bearers to 20,571. That is a decrease of 160 (-0.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #1,728 to #1,707.
What does the Census say about the background of Jorgensen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Jorgensen, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.7%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Jorgensen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.0% (18,935 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Jorgensen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.0%), Hispanic (3.7%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Jorgensen (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 Jorgensen mean?
Son of Jørgen, a Danish and Norwegian form of George, meaning "farmer" or "earth-worker." 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 Jorgensen (6.88 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 are called Jorgensen?
For a quick modern take, check how common the surname Jorgensen is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.