2000
#125,639
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 126
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sorkness
A surname derived from a Norwegian place name containing the word "sørk" meaning a sour or small lake.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Sorkness. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sorkness 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Sorkness in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sorkness, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sorkness
The surname Sorkness has its origins in Norway, where it first appeared in the 14th century. It is thought to be derived from the Old Norse words "sorkr" meaning "black" and "nes" meaning "headland" or "promontory". This suggests that the name may have originally referred to someone who lived near a dark or blackened coastal headland.
The earliest known record of the name Sorkness dates back to 1362, when a person by the name of Olaf Sorkness was mentioned in a land deed from the Hallingdal region of southern Norway. Over the following centuries, the name spread to other parts of the country, with variations in spelling such as Sorknes, Sorknæs, and Sørknæs appearing in various historical documents.
In the 16th century, a man named Hans Sorkness was recorded as a prominent fisherman and ship owner in the coastal town of Ålesund. His descendants continued to play an important role in the local maritime industry for several generations.
During the 19th century, the Sorkness name began to appear in historical records from other parts of Europe, likely due to emigration from Norway. In 1842, a Swedish woman named Anna Sorkness was born in the town of Gävle. She later became a celebrated opera singer, performing in major cities across Europe until her death in 1912.
Another notable individual with the Sorkness surname was the Norwegian explorer and naturalist Bjørn Sorkness (1845-1918). He is best known for his expeditions to the Arctic regions, where he made significant contributions to the study of polar flora and fauna.
Other individuals bearing the Sorkness name include the Danish painter Inger Sorkness (1879-1957), whose works were exhibited in various galleries across Scandinavia, and the Norwegian politician Torbjørn Sorkness (1901-1982), who served as a member of the Storting, Norway's national parliament, for several terms in the mid-20th century.
While the Sorkness surname is still relatively uncommon outside of Norway, it has a rich history that stretches back over six centuries, with its roots firmly planted in the rugged coastal landscapes of the Norwegian fjords.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sorkness
Among Census respondents with the surname Sorkness, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Sorkness 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 Sorkness surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.9% · 102
- Two or more races4.5% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.8% · 2
- Hispanic or Latino0.9% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sorkness
Sorkness 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
#130,610
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 130
+4 bearers (+3.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 4,971 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-19 bearers (-14.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,055 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #125,639 | 126 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #130,610 | 130 | 0.04 | +4 bearers (+3.2%) | Down 4,971 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -19 bearers (-14.6%) | Down 18,055 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 Sorkness 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 | #130,610 | #148,665 | -13.8% |
| Count | 130 | 111 | -14.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sorkness bearers went from 130 to 111 (-14.6% change). The surname moved down 18,055 positions in the national ranking, going from #130,610 to #148,665.
FAQ
Sorkness surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sorkness?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Sorkness. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Sorkness?
Sorkness ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Sorkness. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Sorkness.
Has Sorkness become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sorkness went from 130 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 19 (-14.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #130,610 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Sorkness?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sorkness, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.5%) 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 Sorkness in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.9% (102 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sorkness appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.9%), Two or More Races (4.5%), 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 Sorkness (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 Sorkness mean?
A surname derived from a Norwegian place name containing the word "sørk" meaning a sour or small lake. 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 Sorkness (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 Sorkness?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.