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

Opsahl, 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 Opsahl surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Opsahl in America

Opsahl is the 24890th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Opsahl surname appeared 999 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Opsahl.

We can also compare 2010 data for Opsahl 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 Opsahl

The surname Opsahl has its origins in Norway, dating back to the medieval period. It is believed to be a locational surname, derived from a farm or hamlet name in Norway. The name is a combination of two Old Norse words, "opr" meaning "high" or "elevated," and "salr" meaning "hall" or "dwelling." Therefore, Opsahl likely referred to a high or elevated hall or dwelling place.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Opsahl can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of Norwegian medieval documents from the 12th to the 16th centuries. The name appears in several charters and records from this period, suggesting it was in use among Norwegian families during the Middle Ages.

In the 16th century, a prominent Norwegian figure named Ove Opsahl (c. 1510-1580) was a wealthy merchant and landowner in the city of Bergen. He played a significant role in the city's economic and political affairs during his lifetime.

Another notable individual with the surname Opsahl was Hans Opsahl (1854-1938), a Norwegian businessman and industrialist. He founded the Opsahl Verk, a successful manufacturing company that produced machinery and equipment for the mining and forestry industries.

In the 19th century, the name Opsahl was also recorded in parts of Sweden, likely due to migration of Norwegians across the border. One such individual was Carl Opsahl (1828-1912), a Swedish-Norwegian journalist and writer who worked for several newspapers and published several books on historical and cultural topics.

In more recent times, the surname Opsahl has been carried by individuals such as Bjarne Opsahl (1905-1985), a Norwegian journalist and author who wrote extensively on topics related to Norwegian culture and history, and Tor Opsahl (born 1954), a Norwegian politician and former member of the Norwegian Parliament.

The name Opsahl continues to be prevalent in Norway and among Norwegian-American communities, reflecting its historical roots and the migration patterns of Norwegians to other parts of the world over the centuries.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Opsahl

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

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

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

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