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

Madsen, 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 Madsen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Madsen in America

Madsen is the 2083rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Madsen surname appeared 17,364 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 6 people would have the surname Madsen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Madsen 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 Madsen

The surname Madsen originated in Denmark during the medieval period, deriving from the personal name Mads, which was a Danish form of the biblical name Matthew. The name Madsen literally means "son of Mads" and was a patronymic name, indicating the individual was the son of someone named Mads.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Madsen date back to the 13th century in various Danish records and chronicles. One notable early bearer of the name was Peder Madsen, a Danish clergyman who lived in the late 15th century and served as the Bishop of Roskilde from 1494 to 1509.

During the medieval and Renaissance periods, the name Madsen appeared in various forms and spellings, including Mathsen, Mathisson, and Matthisson, reflecting regional variations and spelling conventions of the time.

In the 16th century, a notable figure with the surname Madsen was Peder Madsen Bille, a Danish nobleman and military commander who played a significant role in the Scandinavian Seven Years' War against Sweden from 1563 to 1570.

Another prominent individual with the Madsen surname was Christian Madsen, a Danish astronomer and mathematician who lived in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. He was known for his work in improving the accuracy of astronomical observations and calculations.

In the 19th century, Jens Madsen, a Danish inventor and entrepreneur, gained recognition for his contributions to the development of early machine guns. He patented the Madsen light machine gun in 1902, which was widely used by various militaries during World War I and World War II.

A more recent figure with the Madsen surname was Viggo Madsen, a Danish-American actor born in 1904. He had a successful career in Hollywood, appearing in numerous films throughout the 1930s and 1940s, including "The Grapes of Wrath" and "Casablanca."

While the name Madsen has Danish origins, it has spread to other parts of the world, particularly through immigration and cultural exchange. Today, the surname Madsen can be found in various countries, with notable bearers contributing to various fields such as science, arts, and literature.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Madsen

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

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 Madsen 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 Madsen 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 Madsen was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!