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

Svendsen, 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 Svendsen surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Svendsen in America

Svendsen is the 13438th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Svendsen surname appeared 2,267 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Svendsen.

We can also compare 2010 data for Svendsen 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.

The history of the last name Svendsen

The surname Svendsen has its origins in Scandinavia, specifically in Denmark and Norway. It is a patronymic name, meaning that it was originally derived from the given name of the father or an ancestor. The name is composed of the Old Norse elements "Svendr" or "Sveinn" meaning "young man" or "boy," and the suffix "-sen" which means "son of."

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Svendsen can be traced back to the 13th century in Denmark and Norway. It is believed to have originated in these regions, where it was commonly used as a way to identify individuals by their paternal lineage. The name was often associated with rural areas and farming communities in its early days.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name Svendsen can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of Norwegian medieval documents dating back to the 13th century. The name also appears in various church records and census records from the same period in both Denmark and Norway.

In the late 16th century, a notable figure with the surname Svendsen was Hans Svendsen (1563-1634), a Danish clergyman and academic who served as the Bishop of Viborg from 1616 until his death.

During the 17th century, Joachim Svendsen (1607-1673) was a Norwegian merchant and shipowner who played a significant role in the development of the Norwegian merchant fleet and trade with the Netherlands.

In the 19th century, Johan Svendsen (1840-1911) was a Norwegian composer and conductor who is renowned for his contributions to the Romantic era of classical music. He is particularly known for his two symphonies and several orchestral works.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Erik Svendsen (1875-1923), a Norwegian explorer and adventurer who led several expeditions to the Arctic regions and was among the first to explore the islands of Svalbard.

In the 20th century, Gustav Svendsen (1904-1989) was a Norwegian politician and lawyer who served as the Prime Minister of Norway from 1965 to 1971.

Throughout its history, the surname Svendsen has maintained a strong presence in Scandinavia, particularly in Denmark and Norway, where it has been associated with various professions, ranging from clergy and academics to merchants, explorers, and politicians.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Svendsen

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

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 Svendsen was:

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

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

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

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