Sundseth last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Sundseth

A Norwegian surname derived from a farmstead or place name containing the element "sund" meaning strait or sound.

Sundseth, 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 Sundseth surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sundseth in America

Sundseth is the 105600th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sundseth surname appeared 169 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Sundseth.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sundseth 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.

2010 2000 Change (%)
Rank 105600 104819 0.74%
Count 169 158 6.73%
Proportion per 100k 0.06 0.06 0.00%

The history of the last name Sundseth

The surname Sundseth originates from Norway and dates back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Norwegian words "sund" meaning a narrow strait or sound, and "sætr" meaning a mountain pasture or summer farm. This suggests that the name may have originally referred to a person or family living near a narrow waterway or inlet in the mountains.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the archives of the Norske Riksarkivet (National Archives of Norway) from the late 1500s, where it is spelled "Sundssæter". This variation in spelling was common in those times due to the lack of standardized orthography.

In the 17th century, the name appears in church records from the parish of Vestre Slidre in the county of Oppland, where several families with the name Sundseth or Sundset were registered. This area is known for its picturesque mountain landscapes and narrow valleys, further supporting the theory of the name's origin.

An notable individual bearing this surname was Nils Sundseth, a Norwegian farmer and politician who lived from 1811 to 1892. He served as a representative in the Storting (Norwegian Parliament) from 1854 to 1857.

Another significant figure was Ingrid Sundseth, a Norwegian author and teacher born in 1859. She published several books on Norwegian folklore and rural life, including the acclaimed work "Fra Valdres" (From Valdres) in 1898.

In the late 19th century, the name Sundseth also appears in records from the parish of Vang in Valdres, where a family of farmers and landowners with this surname is mentioned.

Olav Sundseth, born in 1875, was a notable Norwegian-American immigrant who settled in Minnesota in the early 1900s. He became a prominent figure in the local Norwegian-American community and played a key role in preserving Norwegian cultural traditions in the United States.

It is worth noting that the name Sundseth has often been associated with the rugged and scenic mountain regions of Norway, particularly in the counties of Oppland and Buskerud, where many families bearing this surname have lived for generations.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sundseth

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

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 Sundseth was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only 83.43% 141
Non-Hispanic Black Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 3.55% 6
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 10.06% 17
Hispanic Origin (S)% (S)

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 Sundseth has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White 83.43% 86.08% -3.13%
Black (S)% (S)% (S)%
Asian and Pacific Islander 3.55% 3.16% 11.62%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)% (S)%
Two or More Races 10.06% 7.59% 27.99%
Hispanic (S)% (S)% (S)%

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!

"Sundseth last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on August 28, 2025. http://namecensus.com/last-names/sundseth-surname-popularity/.

"Sundseth last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/sundseth-surname-popularity/. Accessed 28 August, 2025

Sundseth last name popularity, history, and meaning. NameCensus.com. Retrieved from http://namecensus.com/last-names/sundseth-surname-popularity/.

Search for a name

Search for a first or last name to learn more about its origin, meaning, and more.

Simple as that.