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

Nordquist, 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 Nordquist surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Nordquist in America

Nordquist is the 13903rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Nordquist surname appeared 2,172 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Nordquist.

We can also compare 2010 data for Nordquist 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 Nordquist

The surname Nordquist originated in Sweden in the 16th century. It is derived from the Old Norse words "norðr" meaning "north" and "kvistr" meaning "branch" or "twig", referring to someone who lived in a northern area or in a northern branch of a settlement.

In Sweden, the name was first recorded in parish records and census rolls from the late 16th and early 17th centuries. Some of the earliest known bearers of the name were farmers and landowners in the provinces of Västergötland and Småland.

The Nordquist name appears in various historical documents, including tax records, land deeds, and military rolls from the 17th and 18th centuries. One notable example is Johan Nordquist, a Swedish artillery officer who served in the Great Northern War under King Charles XII in the early 1700s.

During the 19th century, the Nordquist name became more widespread in Sweden as people started migrating to cities and urban areas. Several prominent individuals bore this surname, including Carl Gustaf Nordquist (1810-1887), a Swedish theologian and bishop, and Henrik Nordquist (1857-1924), a renowned architect who designed several notable buildings in Stockholm.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Swedes bearing the Nordquist name immigrated to the United States and other parts of the world, seeking economic opportunities and a better life. One notable American with this surname was Sten Nordquist (1893-1972), a Swedish-American artist and illustrator known for his work in children's books and magazine illustrations.

Another notable bearer of the Nordquist name was Gunnar Nordquist (1912-1995), a Swedish diplomat and ambassador who served in various countries, including the United States and the Soviet Union during the Cold War era.

The Nordquist surname has undergone slight variations in spelling over time, with alternate forms such as Nordqvist and Norqvist appearing in historical records. However, the core meaning and origin of the name have remained consistent, reflecting its deep roots in Scandinavian history and culture.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Nordquist

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

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

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

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