2000
#15,252
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,770
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.66
Rare Last name
Nygren
A Swedish surname derived from nygan, meaning "the new one."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,029 Americans carry the last name Nygren. That puts it at #15,858 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 168,928 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Nygren 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
2.0K
1 in 168,928
Census rank
#15,858
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,769 bearers of the surname Nygren in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15858th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Nygren, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Nygren
The surname NYGREN has its origins in Sweden. It is believed to have emerged in the late 17th or early 18th century. The name is derived from the Swedish words "ny" meaning new and "gren" meaning branch or twig. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in a newly established settlement or area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name NYGREN can be found in the parish records of Örebro County, Sweden, from the late 1600s. The name was particularly prevalent in the regions of Västmanland and Närke in central Sweden during this time period.
In the late 18th century, a man named Anders Nygren (1733-1809) was a prominent farmer and landowner in the village of Hällefors, Västmanland. His descendants continued to use the NYGREN surname in the area for generations.
Another notable figure with the NYGREN surname was Carl Gustaf Nygren (1856-1917), a Swedish architect who designed several notable buildings in Stockholm, including the Grand Hôtel and the Riksdagshuset (the Parliament House).
In the 20th century, Gustaf Nygren (1892-1976) was a Swedish Lutheran minister and theologian who served as the Bishop of Lund from 1958 to 1962.
Moving beyond Sweden, the NYGREN surname has also been documented in other Scandinavian countries, such as Norway and Finland, likely due to migration patterns within the region.
One notable Norwegian with the NYGREN surname was Olaf Nygren (1874-1957), a politician and trade unionist who served as the Mayor of Oslo from 1923 to 1937.
While the NYGREN surname is primarily associated with Scandinavia, it has also been documented in other parts of the world, likely due to emigration from Sweden and other Nordic countries over the past few centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Nygren
Among Census respondents with the surname Nygren, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Nygren 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 Nygren surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.6% · 1,638
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 57
- Two or more races2.4% · 43
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.4% · 25
- Black or African American0.2% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Nygren
Nygren 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
#16,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,755
-15 bearers (-0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Down 1,143 places
2020
#15,858
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,769
+14 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.59
Rank movement Up 537 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #15,252 | 1,770 | 0.66 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #16,395 | 1,755 | 0.59 | -15 bearers (-0.8%) | Down 1,143 places |
| 2020 | #15,858 | 1,769 | 0.59 | +14 bearers (+0.8%) | Up 537 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 Nygren 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 | #16,395 | #15,858 | 3.3% |
| Count | 1,755 | 1,769 | 0.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.59 | 0.59 | 0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Nygren bearers went from 1,755 to 1,769 (+0.8% change). The surname moved up 537 positions in the national ranking, going from #16,395 to #15,858.
FAQ
Nygren surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Nygren?
Name Census estimates that about 2,029 living Americans carry the surname Nygren. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 168,928 residents.
How common is Nygren?
Nygren ranks #15,858 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,769 people with the surname Nygren. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,029), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Nygren.
Has Nygren become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Nygren went from 1,755 recorded bearers to 1,769. That is an increase of 14 (+0.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #16,395 to #15,858.
What does the Census say about the background of Nygren?
Among Census respondents with the surname Nygren, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Nygren in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.6% (1,638 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Nygren appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.6%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (2.4%). 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 Nygren (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 Nygren mean?
A Swedish surname derived from nygan, meaning "the new one." 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 Nygren (0.59 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 Nygren?
Find out how many people are called Nygren on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.