2000
#13,213
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,119
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.79
Rare Last name
Swanner
An occupational surname for a herdsman or pig farmer, derived from the Old English "swan" meaning pig keeper.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,326 Americans carry the last name Swanner. That puts it at #14,214 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 147,358 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Swanner 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
2.3K
1 in 147,358
Census rank
#14,214
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,028 bearers of the surname Swanner in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14214th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Swanner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Swanner
The surname SWANNER is believed to have originated in England, deriving from an occupational name for someone who tended to swans, a keeper or breeder of swans. The name is thought to have emerged in the 13th century, with early spellings including Swanere, Swanherde, and Swanneherder.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname SWANNER can be found in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, which mention a Robert le Swanere. The name also appears in various medieval records and manorial court rolls from different parts of England, such as the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield from 1379, which reference a John Swanhird.
The SWANNER surname is often associated with the royal tradition of swan-keeping, as swans were highly prized and protected birds in medieval England. Ownership of swans was a privilege reserved for the Crown and certain nobles and landowners, leading to the establishment of professional swan-keepers or "swanners."
One notable historical figure with the surname SWANNER was William Swanner (c.1505-1558), who served as the Master of the Swans for King Henry VIII and later Queen Elizabeth I. Swanner was responsible for overseeing the Crown's swans and maintaining the royal swan-marks, which were used to identify ownership of the birds.
Another individual of note was Thomas Swanner (c.1620-1680), a renowned swan-keeper from Buckinghamshire, who was commissioned by King Charles II to manage the royal swans on the River Thames and its tributaries. Swanner's detailed records and observations of swan behavior and migration patterns are considered valuable contributions to early ornithological studies.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the SWANNER surname was particularly prevalent in areas known for swan-keeping, such as the counties of Buckinghamshire, Oxfordshire, and Berkshire. Some early place names associated with the surname include Swanbourne (Buckinghamshire) and Swanscombe (Kent), which likely derived from Old English words related to swans.
Other notable individuals with the SWANNER surname include John Swanner (c.1675-1745), a respected swan-keeper from Oxfordshire who authored a treatise on swan husbandry, and Elizabeth Swanner (1730-1804), a landowner and philanthropist from Buckinghamshire who endowed several charitable institutions in her will.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Swanner
Among Census respondents with the surname Swanner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Swanner 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 Swanner surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.6% · 1,858
- Two or more races3.6% · 74
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 67
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 11
- Black or African American0.5% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 8
Timeline
Historical Census data for Swanner
Swanner 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
#13,330
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,288
+169 bearers (+8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.78
Rank movement Down 117 places
2020
#14,214
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,028
-260 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.68
Rank movement Down 884 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,213 | 2,119 | 0.79 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,330 | 2,288 | 0.78 | +169 bearers (+8.0%) | Down 117 places |
| 2020 | #14,214 | 2,028 | 0.68 | -260 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 884 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 Swanner 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 | #13,330 | #14,214 | -6.6% |
| Count | 2,288 | 2,028 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.78 | 0.68 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Swanner bearers went from 2,288 to 2,028 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 884 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,330 to #14,214.
FAQ
Swanner surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Swanner?
Name Census estimates that about 2,326 living Americans carry the surname Swanner. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 147,358 residents.
How common is Swanner?
Swanner ranks #14,214 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.68 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,028 people with the surname Swanner. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,326), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.68 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.68 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Swanner.
Has Swanner become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Swanner went from 2,288 recorded bearers to 2,028. That is a decrease of 260 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,330 to #14,214.
What does the Census say about the background of Swanner?
Among Census respondents with the surname Swanner, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.6%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Swanner in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.6% (1,858 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Swanner appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.6%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Swanner (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 Swanner mean?
An occupational surname for a herdsman or pig farmer, derived from the Old English "swan" meaning pig keeper. 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 Swanner (0.68 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 have the surname Swanner?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.