2000
#67,317
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 274
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.10
Very Rare Last name
Svenningsen
A Scandinavian surname derived from the given name Svenning, a diminutive form of Svend.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 295 Americans carry the last name Svenningsen. That puts it at #79,808 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,161,879 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Svenningsen 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
295
1 in 1,161,879
Census rank
#79,808
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
257
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 257 bearers of the surname Svenningsen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 79808th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Svenningsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Svenningsen
The surname Svenningsen is of Scandinavian origin, specifically from Denmark and Norway. It likely emerged in the 12th or 13th century as a patronymic name, meaning "son of Svenning". Svenning itself is a diminutive form of the given name Sven, which is derived from the Old Norse name Sveinnn, meaning "young man" or "boy".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Svenningsen surname can be found in the Danish Census Book of 1645, where a man named Niels Svenningsen is listed as residing in the town of Ribe. Another early mention is in the Norwegian Farm Census of 1666, which includes an entry for a farmer named Peder Svenningsen living in the village of Bjerkreim.
In the 17th century, the Svenningsen name appears to have been particularly prevalent in the Danish region of Jutland and the Norwegian regions of Agder and Rogaland. This may be due to the name's origins as a patronymic, with families adopting the surname based on the given name of the father or an ancestor.
One notable bearer of the Svenningsen surname was Hans Svenningsen, a Danish merchant and shipowner who lived from 1585 to 1659. He was a prominent figure in the city of Aalborg and played a significant role in the city's maritime trade.
Another individual of note was Inger Svenningsen, a Norwegian woman born in 1760 who was one of the first female authors in Norway. She is known for her autobiographical work "En Selvbiografi" (An Autobiography), which provided insights into the lives of women in 18th-century Norway.
In the 19th century, Svend Svenningsen (1828-1901) was a Danish politician and lawyer who served as a member of the Folketing (Danish Parliament) and played a role in the drafting of the Danish Constitution of 1849.
Nils Svenningsen (1865-1945) was a Norwegian artist and painter known for his landscape paintings depicting scenes from rural Norway. His works are part of the collections of several museums in Norway.
Lastly, Einar Svenningsen (1902-1972) was a Norwegian architect who designed several notable buildings in Oslo, including the Oslo City Hall and the Norwegian National Opera & Ballet.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Svenningsen
Among Census respondents with the surname Svenningsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Svenningsen 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 Svenningsen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 235
- Hispanic or Latino5.1% · 13
- Two or more races2.7% · 7
- Black or African American0.4% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Svenningsen
Svenningsen 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
#66,553
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 297
+23 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.10
Rank movement Up 764 places
2020
#79,808
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 257
-40 bearers (-13.5%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Down 13,255 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #67,317 | 274 | 0.10 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #66,553 | 297 | 0.10 | +23 bearers (+8.4%) | Up 764 places |
| 2020 | #79,808 | 257 | 0.09 | -40 bearers (-13.5%) | Down 13,255 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 Svenningsen 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 | #66,553 | #79,808 | -19.9% |
| Count | 297 | 257 | -13.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.10 | 0.09 | -14.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Svenningsen bearers went from 297 to 257 (-13.5% change). The surname moved down 13,255 positions in the national ranking, going from #66,553 to #79,808.
FAQ
Svenningsen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Svenningsen?
Name Census estimates that about 295 living Americans carry the surname Svenningsen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,161,879 residents.
How common is Svenningsen?
Svenningsen ranks #79,808 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 257 people with the surname Svenningsen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (295), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Svenningsen.
Has Svenningsen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Svenningsen went from 297 recorded bearers to 257. That is a decrease of 40 (-13.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #66,553 to #79,808.
What does the Census say about the background of Svenningsen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Svenningsen, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.1%) and Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Svenningsen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (235 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Svenningsen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (5.1%), Two or More Races (2.7%). 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 Svenningsen (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 Svenningsen mean?
A Scandinavian surname derived from the given name Svenning, a diminutive form of Svend. 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 Svenningsen (0.09 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 Svenningsen?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.