2010
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Thorgerson
A surname of Scandinavian origin, potentially derived from Thor's name and meaning "Thor's son."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 117 Americans carry the last name Thorgerson. That puts it at #154,755 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,929,524 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Thorgerson 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
117
1 in 2,929,524
Census rank
#154,755
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
102
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 102 bearers of the surname Thorgerson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 154755th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Thorgerson
The surname THORGERSON is of Scandinavian origin, specifically from Norway and Sweden. It is believed to have originated in the Viking era, around the 8th to 11th centuries AD. The name is derived from the Old Norse words "Thor" and "ger", which together mean "spear of Thor".
In ancient Norse mythology, Thor was the god of thunder, lightning, storms, and strength. He was one of the most revered deities in the Norse pantheon. The name THORGERSON likely referred to someone who was a skilled warrior or spearman, invoking the protection and power of the mighty Thor.
The earliest recorded instances of the name THORGERSON can be traced back to the 11th century, in various Norwegian and Swedish historical records and manuscripts. One notable mention is found in the Icelandic Sagas, which recount the exploits of Norse settlers and their descendants in Iceland.
In the 13th century, a man named Thorgerson Halvorsson was mentioned in the Gulatingsloven, an ancient Norwegian legal code. He was a farmer and landowner from the region of Vestfold, located in southeastern Norway.
During the 15th century, a Swedish nobleman named Thorgerson Svensson was a prominent figure in the court of King Gustav I Vasa. He served as a royal advisor and played a significant role in the Reformation in Sweden.
In the 17th century, a Norwegian sea captain named Thorgerson Andersen gained fame for his daring voyages and successful trade expeditions to the Arctic regions. He was born in the coastal town of Trondheim in 1621 and died in 1692.
One of the most renowned individuals with the surname THORGERSON was the British artist and graphic designer, Storm Thorgerson, who was born in 1944 and passed away in 2013. He is best known for his iconic album cover designs for bands like Pink Floyd, Led Zeppelin, and Muse.
Throughout history, the surname THORGERSON has been associated with various locations and place names in Scandinavia, such as Thorgersby, Thorgersdal, and Thorgersviken, reflecting the areas where individuals with this name may have resided or originated from.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Thorgerson
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Thorgerson 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 Thorgerson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.1% · 98
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Thorgerson
Thorgerson appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#154,755
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 102
-25 bearers (-19.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 21,707 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #154,755 | 102 | 0.03 | -25 bearers (-19.7%) | Down 21,707 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 Thorgerson 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 | #133,048 | #154,755 | -16.3% |
| Count | 127 | 102 | -19.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -14.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Thorgerson bearers went from 127 to 102 (-19.7% change). The surname moved down 21,707 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #154,755.
FAQ
Thorgerson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Thorgerson?
Name Census estimates that about 117 living Americans carry the surname Thorgerson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,929,524 residents.
How common is Thorgerson?
Thorgerson ranks #154,755 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 102 people with the surname Thorgerson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (117), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Thorgerson.
Has Thorgerson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Thorgerson went from 127 recorded bearers to 102. That is a decrease of 25 (-19.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #154,755.
What does the Census say about the background of Thorgerson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Thorgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.9%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Thorgerson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.1% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Thorgerson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.1%), Two or More Races (2.9%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Thorgerson (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 Thorgerson mean?
A surname of Scandinavian origin, potentially derived from Thor's name and meaning "Thor's son." 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 Thorgerson (0.03 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 are called Thorgerson?
If you just want to know how common the surname Thorgerson is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.