Find out how popular the last name Kristensen is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Kristensen.

Kristensen, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Kristensen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Kristensen in America

Kristensen is the 23002nd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Kristensen surname appeared 1,111 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Kristensen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Kristensen to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Kristensen

The surname Kristensen originates from Denmark and is believed to have emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. It is a patronymic name, meaning it is derived from the given name of an ancestor, in this case, Kristen, which is the Danish form of the name Christian.

The name Kristen itself has its roots in the Greek word "Christianos," meaning a follower of Christ. The suffix "-sen" is a common Danish patronymic suffix, indicating "son of." Thus, Kristensen literally translates to "son of Kristen" or "son of Christian."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Kristensen can be found in the Danish Census of 1787, where a man named Jens Kristensen is listed as residing in the village of Skjern, located in the western part of Jutland, Denmark. This suggests that the name had already been established in this region by the late 18th century.

In the 16th century, a prominent figure named Peder Kristensen Porse (1501-1569) was a Danish nobleman and landowner who played a significant role in the Protestant Reformation in Denmark. He was a close ally of King Christian III and was instrumental in the implementation of the new Lutheran Church in the country.

Another notable individual with the surname Kristensen was Hans Kristensen (1853-1928), a Danish painter and illustrator who was known for his depictions of Danish landscapes and rural scenes. His works are highly regarded and can be found in various museums and art galleries throughout Denmark.

In the field of literature, the name Kristensen is associated with the Danish author and critic Steen Steensen Blicher (1782-1848). Although his surname was Blicher, he was also known by the patronymic Kristensen, as his father's name was Kristen.

Moving forward in time, the Danish businessman and philanthropist Mærsk Mc-Kinney Møller (1913-2012), who was the former CEO and chairman of the shipping company A.P. Moller-Maersk Group, also bore the surname Kristensen as his middle name, which was derived from his mother's maiden name.

While the surname Kristensen is predominantly Danish in origin, it has also been adopted by individuals in other Scandinavian countries, such as Norway and Sweden, due to the close cultural and linguistic ties between these nations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Kristensen

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Kristensen.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Kristensen was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Kristensen has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Kristensen was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Kristensen, please contact us.

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