2000
#4,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,826
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.90
Rare Last name
Samuelson
A patronymic surname derived from the Biblical male given name Samuel, meaning "told by God" or "God has heard."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,639 Americans carry the last name Samuelson. That puts it at #4,568 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.52 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,675 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Samuelson 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 Samuelson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
8.6K
1 in 39,675
Census rank
#4,568
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,534 bearers of the surname Samuelson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.52 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4568th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Samuelson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Samuelson
The surname Samuelson originated in Sweden and dates back to the 17th century. It is a patronymic name, meaning it was initially derived from the first name of the father, in this case Samuel. The addition of "son" indicates "son of Samuel." The name Samuel itself has Hebrew origins, meaning "name of God" or "God has heard."
During the 17th and 18th centuries, many Swedes adopted surnames based on their father's first name or their place of residence. Samuelson became a common surname in various parts of Sweden, particularly in the regions of Västergötland, Småland, and Östergötland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Samuelson can be found in the Swedish church records from the late 17th century. For example, the birth of Johan Samuelson was registered in Västra Vingåker parish, Södermanland, in 1688.
In the 19th century, some notable individuals with the surname Samuelson emerged. Carl Samuelson (1810-1884) was a Swedish businessman and industrialist who founded the Samuelson engineering works in Linköping. He played a significant role in the industrialization of Sweden.
Another prominent figure was Johan August Samuelson (1831-1919), a Swedish historian and author who wrote extensively about the history of Scandinavia and the Viking Age.
In the United States, the surname Samuelson gained recognition through the work of Paul Samuelson (1915-2009), an American economist who was awarded the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1970 for his contributions to economic theory.
Other notable individuals with the surname Samuelson include Richard Samuelson (1923-2017), an American inventor and entrepreneur known for his work on the first-ever self-contained scuba system, and Ralph Samuelson (1904-1977), a Swedish water polo player who competed in the 1924 and 1928 Summer Olympics.
While the surname Samuelson may have originated in Sweden, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through immigration and migration patterns. However, its roots can be traced back to the Swedish tradition of patronymic naming conventions, reflecting the name of the father and the cultural heritage of the Scandinavian region.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Samuelson
Among Census respondents with the surname Samuelson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Samuelson 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 Samuelson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.4% · 6,808
- Two or more races3.2% · 238
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 219
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.0% · 147
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 75
- Black or African American0.6% · 47
Timeline
Historical Census data for Samuelson
Samuelson 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
#4,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,824
-2 bearers (-0.0%)
Per 100,000 2.65
Rank movement Down 331 places
2020
#4,568
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,534
-290 bearers (-3.7%)
Per 100,000 2.52
Rank movement Down 36 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,201 | 7,826 | 2.90 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,532 | 7,824 | 2.65 | -2 bearers (-0.0%) | Down 331 places |
| 2020 | #4,568 | 7,534 | 2.52 | -290 bearers (-3.7%) | Down 36 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 Samuelson 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 | #4,532 | #4,568 | -0.8% |
| Count | 7,824 | 7,534 | -3.7% |
| Per 100K | 2.65 | 2.52 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Samuelson bearers went from 7,824 to 7,534 (-3.7% change). The surname moved down 36 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,532 to #4,568.
FAQ
Samuelson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Samuelson?
Name Census estimates that about 8,639 living Americans carry the surname Samuelson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,675 residents.
How common is Samuelson?
Samuelson ranks #4,568 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.52 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 7,534 people with the surname Samuelson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,639), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.52 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.52 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Samuelson.
Has Samuelson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Samuelson went from 7,824 recorded bearers to 7,534. That is a decrease of 290 (-3.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,532 to #4,568.
What does the Census say about the background of Samuelson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Samuelson, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Samuelson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.4% (6,808 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Samuelson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.4%), Two or More Races (3.2%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Samuelson (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 Samuelson mean?
A patronymic surname derived from the Biblical male given name Samuel, meaning "told by God" or "God has heard." 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 Samuelson (2.52 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 have the last name Samuelson?
Want to know how common the surname Samuelson is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.