Sweetenburg last name popularity, history, and meaning

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

Meaning of Sweetenburg

An ornamental surname derived from a place name combining "sweet" and "burg" (town).

Sweetenburg, 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 Sweetenburg surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Sweetenburg in America

Sweetenburg is the 139228th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Sweetenburg surname appeared 120 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 Sweetenburg.

We can also compare 2010 data for Sweetenburg 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 139228 135837 2.47%
Count 120 114 5.13%
Proportion per 100k 0.04 0.04 0.00%

The history of the last name Sweetenburg

The surname Sweetenburg is of English origin, dating back to the 13th century. It is believed to have originated from a place name, likely a small village or hamlet in the southeastern part of England. The name itself is thought to be derived from the Old English words "swet" meaning "sweet" and "burg" meaning "fortified town or settlement."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Sweetenburg can be found in the Feet of Fines records from Norfolk, England, in the year 1275. These legal documents mention a person named Robert de Swetenburg, indicating that the name was already in use during this time period.

The Sweetenburg name also appears in the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire from 1327, where a Thomas Swettenburgh is listed as a taxpayer. This shows that the name had spread to other parts of England by the 14th century.

In the 15th century, the surname is documented in the Chancery Proceedings of Henry VI's reign, with a mention of a John Sweetenburg from Gloucestershire in 1444.

One of the notable figures bearing the Sweetenburg surname was Sir William Sweetenburg (1585-1652), a prominent landowner and Member of Parliament for Taunton during the English Civil War. He was a staunch Royalist and supported King Charles I.

Another historically significant individual was Reverend Thomas Sweetenburg (1612-1689), an English clergyman and author who served as the vicar of St. Mary's Church in Ipswich, Suffolk. He wrote several theological works during his lifetime.

In the 18th century, a wealthy merchant named James Sweetenburg (1702-1778) made his fortune in the East India Company and left a substantial estate upon his death, as documented in the probate records of that time.

The name Sweetenburg also has ties to the United States, with one of the earliest recorded individuals being John Sweetenburg (1725-1802), a farmer and landowner from Virginia. He was a veteran of the American Revolutionary War.

Another notable American bearing this surname was Elizabeth Sweetenburg (1810-1892), a pioneer and early settler in the Oregon Territory. She is recognized for her role in establishing one of the first schools in the Willamette Valley.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Sweetenburg

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

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 Sweetenburg was:

Race/Ethnicity Percentage Total Occurrences
Non-Hispanic White Only (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic Black Only 91.67% 110
Non-Hispanic Asian and Pacific Islander Only 0.00% 0
Non-Hispanic American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% (S)
Non-Hispanic of Two or More Races 4.17% 5
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 Sweetenburg has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

2010 2000 Change (%)
White (S)% (S)% (S)%
Black 91.67% 97.37% -6.03%
Asian and Pacific Islander 0.00% 0.00% 0.00%
American Indian and Alaskan Native (S)% 0.00% (S)%
Two or More Races 4.17% (S)% (S)%
Hispanic (S)% 0.00% (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 Sweetenburg was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

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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!

"Sweetenburg last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com. Accessed on November 22, 2024. http://namecensus.com/last-names/sweetenburg-surname-popularity/.

"Sweetenburg last name popularity, history, and meaning". NameCensus.com, http://namecensus.com/last-names/sweetenburg-surname-popularity/. Accessed 22 November, 2024

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

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