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

Poulsen, 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 Poulsen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Poulsen in America

Poulsen is the 8496th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Poulsen surname appeared 3,877 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 Poulsen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Poulsen 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 Poulsen

The surname Poulsen has its origins in Denmark, where it first emerged in the 14th century. It is derived from the Old Danish personal name 'Poul', which was a variant of the name 'Palle', itself a pet form of the name 'Paulinus'. This name ultimately traces its roots back to the Latin name 'Paulus', meaning 'small' or 'humble'.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Poulsen can be found in the Danish Census of 1474, which lists a farmer named Niels Poulsen residing in the village of Skive. The name also appears in the Lensregnskaber, a collection of Danish administrative records from the 16th and 17th centuries, where it is spelled variously as 'Poulsen', 'Paulsen', and 'Poulßen'.

In the 16th century, the name Poulsen was particularly prominent in the region of Jutland, where it was often associated with families of farmers and landowners. One notable bearer of the name from this time was Peder Poulsen (1543-1615), a Lutheran clergyman who served as the Bishop of Viborg from 1597 until his death.

The 18th century saw the rise of several Poulsen families in the fields of science and academia. Johan Poulsen (1720-1788) was a renowned astronomer and mathematician who made important contributions to the development of celestial cartography. His contemporary, Andreas Poulsen (1726-1801), was a noted philologist and linguist who served as the rector of the University of Copenhagen.

In the 19th century, the name Poulsen was associated with several prominent figures in the fields of engineering and industry. Valdemar Poulsen (1869-1942) was a Danish inventor and engineer who pioneered the development of the magnetic wire recorder, an early form of audio recording technology. His cousin, Poul Poulsen (1874-1949), was a successful businessman and industrialist who founded the Poulsen & Co. shipping company.

Moving into the 20th century, the name Poulsen was borne by several notable artists and writers. Viggo Poulsen (1908-1992) was a celebrated Danish painter known for his vibrant, expressionist landscapes. Tage Poulsen (1914-1994) was a popular Danish author and playwright who wrote several novels and screenplays throughout his career.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Poulsen

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

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

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

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