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

Torgerson, 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 Torgerson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Torgerson in America

Torgerson is the 6843rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Torgerson surname appeared 4,923 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 2 people would have the surname Torgerson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Torgerson 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 Torgerson

The surname Torgerson is of Scandinavian origin, derived from the Old Norse personal name Thorgeir or Thorgeirr, composed of the elements "Thor" (the name of the Norse god of thunder) and "geirr" (meaning spear). It is believed to have originated in Norway and Sweden during the Viking Age (793-1066 AD).

The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval Scandinavian records and manuscripts, often appearing as Torgerson, Torgeirsson, or similar spellings. One notable example is the 13th-century Icelandic saga Njáls saga, which mentions a character named Torgeirr.

In the 9th century, many Scandinavian settlers migrated to areas of present-day England and Scotland, bringing their surnames with them. Some of the earliest recorded Torgersons in Britain can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where the name appears as Torchersune or Torchetil.

As the name spread across Europe, it underwent various spelling variations, such as Torgersen, Torgerson, Torgeirsson, and Torgeirson. These variations often reflected regional dialects and local pronunciation patterns.

Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the surname Torgerson, including:

1. Torgils Torgeirsson (c. 1050-1107), a Norwegian chieftain and one of the founders of the city of Trondheim.
2. Thorgeir Torgeirsson (c. 1150-1220), an Icelandic lawspeaker and chieftain.
3. Olav Torgeirsson (c. 1300-1370), a Norwegian farmer and landowner in Trøndelag.
4. Hans Torgersen (1594-1652), a Danish-Norwegian merchant and shipowner.
5. Nils Torgerson (1800-1876), a Norwegian-American pioneer and settler in Wisconsin, United States.

The surname Torgerson has also been associated with various place names throughout Scandinavia, such as Torgersbøl in Denmark and Torgersrud in Norway, indicating the historical presence of families bearing this name in those regions.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Torgerson

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

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

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

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