2000
#68,782
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 267
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.10
Very Rare Last name
Mehus
A Norwegian surname derived from the word "mellom" meaning "between".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 286 Americans carry the last name Mehus. That puts it at #81,829 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,198,442 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mehus 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.
Bearers in the US
286
1 in 1,198,442
Census rank
#81,829
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
249
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 249 bearers of the surname Mehus in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 81829th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mehus, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mehus
The surname Mehus has its origins in Norway, tracing back to the 17th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old Norse word "meyr," which means a small woodland or a grove, suggesting that the name may have originated from a family residing near or in a wooded area.
In the early records, the name appeared with various spellings, such as Mehus, Mehuis, and Mehuus, reflecting the regional dialects and inconsistencies in written records during that period. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the parish records of Telemark, Norway, dating back to the late 1600s.
The Mehus name gained prominence in the 19th century, with several notable individuals bearing this surname. One such figure was Peter Olsen Mehus (1818-1901), a Norwegian-American farmer and politician who served as a member of the Wisconsin State Assembly from 1856 to 1857.
Another prominent individual was Hans Mehus (1826-1911), a Norwegian farmer and politician who served as a member of the Storting, the Norwegian parliament, from 1874 to 1879. He was known for his advocacy of agricultural reforms and rural development.
In the literary realm, Arne Mehus (1901-1975) was a Norwegian author and poet, renowned for his lyrical works that celebrated the beauty of nature and rural life. His collection of poems, "Skogbryn" (Forest Edge), published in 1933, received critical acclaim and established him as a significant voice in Norwegian literature.
The Mehus name can also be traced to the United States, where Norwegian emigrants brought it with them. One notable American bearing this surname was Ole Mehus (1845-1922), a Norwegian-American farmer and businessman who settled in Minnesota in the late 19th century and played a prominent role in the development of the local agricultural community.
Additionally, the Mehus surname has been associated with several place names in Norway, such as Mehus farm in Telemark and Mehus valley in Vest-Agder, further solidifying its connection to the region's landscape and geography.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mehus
Among Census respondents with the surname Mehus, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Mehus 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 Mehus surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.6% · 238
- Two or more races2.8% · 7
- Hispanic or Latino1.2% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mehus
Mehus 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
#68,547
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 287
+20 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Up 235 places
2020
#81,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 249
-38 bearers (-13.2%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 13,282 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #68,782 | 267 | 0.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #68,547 | 287 | 0.10 | +20 bearers (+7.5%) | Up 235 places |
| 2020 | #81,829 | 249 | 0.08 | -38 bearers (-13.2%) | Down 13,282 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 Mehus 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 | #68,547 | #81,829 | -19.4% |
| Count | 287 | 249 | -13.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.10 | 0.08 | -16.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mehus bearers went from 287 to 249 (-13.2% change). The surname moved down 13,282 positions in the national ranking, going from #68,547 to #81,829.
FAQ
Mehus surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mehus?
Name Census estimates that about 286 living Americans carry the surname Mehus. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,198,442 residents.
How common is Mehus?
Mehus ranks #81,829 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 249 people with the surname Mehus. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (286), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Mehus.
Has Mehus become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mehus went from 287 recorded bearers to 249. That is a decrease of 38 (-13.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #68,547 to #81,829.
What does the Census say about the background of Mehus?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mehus, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.8%) and Hispanic (1.2%). 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 Mehus in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.6% (238 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mehus appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.6%), Two or More Races (2.8%), Hispanic (1.2%). 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 Mehus (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 Mehus mean?
A Norwegian surname derived from the word "mellom" meaning "between". 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 Mehus (0.08 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 Americans have the surname Mehus?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.