2000
#16,581
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,594
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.59
Rare Last name
Ohlson
A Swedish occupational surname referring to someone who brewed ale or beer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,797 Americans carry the last name Ohlson. That puts it at #17,611 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 190,737 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ohlson 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Ohlson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.8K
1 in 190,737
Census rank
#17,611
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,567 bearers of the surname Ohlson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 17611th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohlson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ohlson
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohlson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Ohlson 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 Ohlson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.9% · 1,424
- Two or more races3.4% · 54
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 53
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 19
- Black or African American0.6% · 9
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ohlson
Ohlson 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
#17,551
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,603
+9 bearers (+0.6%)
Per 100,000 0.54
Rank movement Down 970 places
2020
#17,611
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,567
-36 bearers (-2.2%)
Per 100,000 0.52
Rank movement Down 60 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #16,581 | 1,594 | 0.59 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #17,551 | 1,603 | 0.54 | +9 bearers (+0.6%) | Down 970 places |
| 2020 | #17,611 | 1,567 | 0.52 | -36 bearers (-2.2%) | Down 60 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 Ohlson 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 | #17,551 | #17,611 | -0.3% |
| Count | 1,603 | 1,567 | -2.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.54 | 0.52 | -2.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ohlson bearers went from 1,603 to 1,567 (-2.2% change). The surname moved down 60 positions in the national ranking, going from #17,551 to #17,611.
FAQ
Ohlson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ohlson?
Name Census estimates that about 1,797 living Americans carry the surname Ohlson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 190,737 residents.
How common is Ohlson?
Ohlson ranks #17,611 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.52 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 1,567 people with the surname Ohlson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,797), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.52 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 Ohlson.
Has Ohlson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ohlson went from 1,603 recorded bearers to 1,567. That is a decrease of 36 (-2.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #17,551 to #17,611.
What does the Census say about the background of Ohlson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ohlson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Ohlson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.9% (1,424 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ohlson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.9%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.4%). 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 Ohlson (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 Ohlson mean?
A Swedish occupational surname referring to someone who brewed ale or beer. 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 Ohlson (0.52 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 Ohlson?
Want to know how many people are called Ohlson? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.