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

Ohlson, 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 Ohlson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Ohlson in America

Ohlson is the 17551st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Ohlson surname appeared 1,603 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 Ohlson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Ohlson 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 Ohlson

The surname OHLSON originated in Sweden during the medieval period. It is a patronymic name, derived from the father's given name Ohl, which itself is a shortened form of the Old Norse name Olaf. Patronymic surnames were common in Scandinavia, where a person's surname would indicate their father's name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name OHLSON can be found in the Swedish census records from the late 16th century. The name was particularly prevalent in the southern provinces of Skåne and Blekinge, where many families bearing the surname can be traced back to the 17th and 18th centuries.

In the early 19th century, Carl Olof Ohlson (1790-1855) was a prominent Swedish merchant and shipowner based in Gothenburg. He played a significant role in the development of the city's maritime trade and was known for his philanthropic efforts.

Another notable individual with the surname OHLSON was Erik Ohlson (1825-1896), a Swedish-American entrepreneur who founded the Ohlson Brewing Company in Minneapolis, Minnesota. His brewery was one of the largest and most successful in the region during the latter half of the 19th century.

In the realm of academia, Gustaf Ohlson (1856-1923) was a Swedish philologist and professor at Uppsala University. He made significant contributions to the study of Old Norse and Old English literature and was a member of the Swedish Academy.

Moving into the 20th century, Olof Ohlson (1901-1976) was a Swedish diplomat who served as Sweden's ambassador to several countries, including the United States and the Soviet Union. He played a crucial role in facilitating the exchange of prisoners of war during World War II.

Lastly, Nils Ohlson (1920-2006) was a renowned Swedish actor and director who had a long and distinguished career on stage and screen. He was particularly celebrated for his portrayal of King Gustav III in the acclaimed 1986 film "The King's Journey."

While the name OHLSON has Swedish roots, it has since spread to other parts of the world due to emigration and intermarriage. However, its origins and historical significance remain firmly rooted in the medieval and early modern periods of Scandinavia.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Ohlson

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Ohlson, 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!