2000
#56,120
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 341
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.13
Very Rare Last name
Smeby
A locational surname referring to someone from Smeby, an area in southern Norway.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 467 Americans carry the last name Smeby. That puts it at #54,637 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.14 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 733,949 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Smeby 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
467
1 in 733,949
Census rank
#54,637
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
407
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 407 bearers of the surname Smeby in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.14 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 54637th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Smeby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Smeby
The surname "SMEBY" is of Norwegian origin, derived from the Old Norse words "smið" meaning "smith" and "býr" meaning "farm" or "dwelling place". It is believed to have originated in the late 12th or early 13th century, referring to a blacksmith or metalworker who lived on a particular farm or settlement.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian documents, where a person named Thorstein Smeby is mentioned in a document dated 1324. This indicates that the name was already in use by the early 14th century.
In the 16th century, the name appears in various church records and census documents from the regions of Østfold and Akershus in southeastern Norway. One notable example is Ove Smeby, born around 1550, who was a prominent landowner and farmer in the Rakkestad area.
The name is also associated with the historic farm and estate of Smeby Gård in Rakkestad, which has been a prominent landholding since the Middle Ages. Records show that members of the Smeby family were owners or tenants of this farm for several centuries.
Over the centuries, the name has had various spellings, including "Smideby", "Smedby", and "Smebye", reflecting the regional variations in pronunciation and orthography.
Some notable individuals with the surname Smeby include:
1. Nils Smeby (1808-1876), a Norwegian politician and farmer who served as a member of the Storting (the Norwegian parliament) in the mid-19th century.
2. Hans Smeby (1842-1918), a Norwegian-American author and journalist who wrote extensively about Norwegian immigration to the United States.
3. Ingrid Smeby Falch (1895-1987), a Norwegian educator and principal who was instrumental in establishing several schools in Oslo.
4. Kristian Smeby (1919-1993), a Norwegian writer and poet known for his works exploring rural life and landscapes.
5. Bjørn Smeby (born 1956), a contemporary Norwegian artist and sculptor whose works are exhibited in various galleries and public spaces.
While the name is predominantly found in Norway, it has also been carried by Norwegian immigrants to other parts of the world, particularly North America, where it can be found among descendants of Norwegian settlers in the Midwestern United States and Canada.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Smeby
Among Census respondents with the surname Smeby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Smeby 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 Smeby surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 373
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 14
- Two or more races3.4% · 14
- Black or African American1.0% · 4
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Smeby
Smeby 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
#56,195
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 364
+23 bearers (+6.7%)
Per 100,000 0.12
Rank movement Down 75 places
2020
#54,637
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 407
+43 bearers (+11.8%)
Per 100,000 0.14
Rank movement Up 1,558 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #56,120 | 341 | 0.13 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #56,195 | 364 | 0.12 | +23 bearers (+6.7%) | Down 75 places |
| 2020 | #54,637 | 407 | 0.14 | +43 bearers (+11.8%) | Up 1,558 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 Smeby 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 | #56,195 | #54,637 | 2.8% |
| Count | 364 | 407 | 11.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.12 | 0.14 | 13.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Smeby bearers went from 364 to 407 (+11.8% change). The surname moved up 1,558 positions in the national ranking, going from #56,195 to #54,637.
FAQ
Smeby surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Smeby?
Name Census estimates that about 467 living Americans carry the surname Smeby. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 733,949 residents.
How common is Smeby?
Smeby ranks #54,637 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.14 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 407 people with the surname Smeby. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (467), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.14 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.14 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 Smeby.
Has Smeby become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Smeby went from 364 recorded bearers to 407. That is an increase of 43 (+11.8%). In the national ranking it rose from #56,195 to #54,637.
What does the Census say about the background of Smeby?
Among Census respondents with the surname Smeby, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Smeby in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (373 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Smeby appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Smeby (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 Smeby mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from Smeby, an area in southern Norway. 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 Smeby (0.14 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 Americans have the surname Smeby?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.