2000
#12,789
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,211
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.82
Rare Last name
Palmquist
A Swedish ornamental name combining palm and kvist, meaning "palm twig" or "palm branch."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,421 Americans carry the last name Palmquist. That puts it at #13,735 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.71 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 141,576 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Palmquist 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
2.4K
1 in 141,576
Census rank
#13,735
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,111 bearers of the surname Palmquist in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.71 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13735th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Palmquist
The surname Palmquist is of Swedish origin, originating in the late 17th or early 18th century. It is a combination of the Swedish words "palm" meaning palm tree and "qvist" meaning twig or branch, likely referring to someone who lived near a place where palm trees grew or someone who worked with palm branches.
Palmquist is a relatively uncommon surname, with most early recorded instances found in Sweden and parts of Finland that had Swedish influence. The earliest known record of the name dates back to 1694 in the parish records of Östra Husby, Östergötland, Sweden, where a man named Johan Palmquist is listed.
In the 18th century, the name appears in various church records and tax rolls across Sweden. One notable early bearer of the name was Carl Palmquist, a Swedish military officer who fought in the Great Northern War against Russia in the early 1700s.
As the Swedish empire expanded its influence in the Baltic region, the name Palmquist also spread to areas of modern-day Finland and Estonia. In the late 18th century, a merchant named Erik Palmquist is recorded as living in the Finnish town of Loviisa (then part of Sweden).
During the 19th century, the Palmquist surname began to appear in immigration records as Swedes and Finns emigrated to North America. One of the earliest known Palmquists in the United States was Anders Palmquist, who arrived in New York in 1846 from Sweden.
Other notable bearers of the Palmquist name throughout history include:
- Johan Palmquist (1832-1908), a Swedish painter and art teacher.
- Carl Gustaf Palmquist (1843-1920), a Swedish politician and member of parliament.
- Vilhelm Palmquist (1835-1904), a Finnish architect who designed several notable buildings in Helsinki.
- Bure Holmboe Palmquist (1876-1959), a Norwegian banker and business leader.
- Sven Palmquist (1913-1985), a Swedish actor and director.
While not a particularly common surname, the Palmquist name has a rich history rooted in Scandinavia, with bearers found throughout Sweden, Finland, and other parts of the Nordic region over the past three centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Palmquist
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Palmquist 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 Palmquist surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.7% · 1,956
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 67
- Two or more races2.6% · 54
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 22
- Black or African American0.5% · 11
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Palmquist
Palmquist 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
#13,578
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,233
+22 bearers (+1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 789 places
2020
#13,735
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,111
-122 bearers (-5.5%)
Per 100,000 0.71
Rank movement Down 157 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,789 | 2,211 | 0.82 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,578 | 2,233 | 0.76 | +22 bearers (+1.0%) | Down 789 places |
| 2020 | #13,735 | 2,111 | 0.71 | -122 bearers (-5.5%) | Down 157 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 Palmquist 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 | #13,578 | #13,735 | -1.2% |
| Count | 2,233 | 2,111 | -5.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.76 | 0.71 | -7.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Palmquist bearers went from 2,233 to 2,111 (-5.5% change). The surname moved down 157 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,578 to #13,735.
FAQ
Palmquist surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Palmquist?
Name Census estimates that about 2,421 living Americans carry the surname Palmquist. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 141,576 residents.
How common is Palmquist?
Palmquist ranks #13,735 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.71 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 2,111 people with the surname Palmquist. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,421), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.71 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.71 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 Palmquist.
Has Palmquist become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Palmquist went from 2,233 recorded bearers to 2,111. That is a decrease of 122 (-5.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,578 to #13,735.
What does the Census say about the background of Palmquist?
Among Census respondents with the surname Palmquist, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.7%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.2%) and Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Palmquist in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.7% (1,956 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Palmquist appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.7%), Hispanic (3.2%), Two or More Races (2.6%). 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 Palmquist (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 Palmquist mean?
A Swedish ornamental name combining palm and kvist, meaning "palm twig" or "palm branch." 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 Palmquist (0.71 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 share the surname Palmquist?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.