2000
#133,114
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Sahlman
A surname originating from Sweden likely referring to someone from the village of Sahlman.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Sahlman. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sahlman 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Sahlman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sahlman, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sahlman
The surname SAHLMAN is of Swedish origin, originating in the late 17th century. It is derived from the Swedish words "sahl" meaning "hall" and "man" meaning "man", likely referring to a man who worked or lived in a hall or manor house.
The earliest recorded instances of the SAHLMAN surname appear in parish records from the region of Östergötland in southern Sweden, where variations such as Salman and Saalman were used interchangeably. These early records date back to the late 1600s and early 1700s.
One notable early bearer of the SAHLMAN name was Johan Sahlman, a Swedish naval officer born in 1701 in Norrköping, Östergötland. He served in the Swedish navy during the Great Northern War and later became a merchant captain, sailing throughout the Baltic Sea region.
In the 19th century, the SAHLMAN surname began to appear in records from other parts of Sweden as well, particularly in the Stockholm area. August Sahlman, born in 1823 in Stockholm, was a renowned painter and art teacher who helped establish the Konstakademien (Royal Academy of Fine Arts) in Stockholm.
Another notable SAHLMAN was Axel Sahlman, born in 1855 in Gävle, Sweden. He was a prominent architect who designed several iconic buildings in Helsinki, Finland, including the Swedish Theatre and the National Museum of Finland.
The SAHLMAN surname also spread to other parts of Scandinavia and beyond. In Norway, records show a Peder Sahlman born in 1842 in Kristiansand, who became a successful shipbuilder and merchant.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the SAHLMAN surname is that of Carl Sahlman, born in 1830 in Sweden. He immigrated to Minnesota in the late 19th century and worked as a farmer in the Swedish community of Chisago County.
While the SAHLMAN surname is not among the most common in Sweden or elsewhere, it has a long and diverse history spanning several centuries and numerous notable individuals across various professions and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sahlman
Among Census respondents with the surname Sahlman, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Sahlman 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 Sahlman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.6% · 106
- Black or African American1.8% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sahlman
Sahlman 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
#147,253
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 14,139 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 701 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #133,114 | 117 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #147,253 | 112 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 14,139 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 701 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 Sahlman 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 | #147,253 | #147,954 | -0.5% |
| Count | 112 | 112 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sahlman bearers went from 112 to 112 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 701 positions in the national ranking, going from #147,253 to #147,954.
FAQ
Sahlman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sahlman?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Sahlman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Sahlman?
Sahlman ranks #147,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 112 people with the surname Sahlman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Sahlman.
Has Sahlman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sahlman went from 112 recorded bearers to 112. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #147,253 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Sahlman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sahlman, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.6%. The next largest groups are Black (1.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Sahlman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.6% (106 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sahlman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.6%), Black (1.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%). 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 Sahlman (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 Sahlman mean?
A surname originating from Sweden likely referring to someone from the village of Sahlman. 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 Sahlman (0.04 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 Sahlman?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.