2000
#6,822
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,545
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.68
Rare Last name
Torgerson
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, meaning "son of Torger" or "descendent of Thor," the Norse god of thunder.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,181 Americans carry the last name Torgerson. That puts it at #7,128 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.51 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 66,156 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Torgerson 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
5.2K
1 in 66,156
Census rank
#7,128
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,518 bearers of the surname Torgerson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.51 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7128th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Torgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Torgerson
Among Census respondents with the surname Torgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Torgerson 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 Torgerson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 4,248
- Two or more races3.2% · 144
- Hispanic or Latino1.8% · 82
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 16
- Black or African American0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Torgerson
Torgerson 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
#6,843
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,923
+378 bearers (+8.3%)
Per 100,000 1.67
Rank movement Down 21 places
2020
#7,128
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,518
-405 bearers (-8.2%)
Per 100,000 1.51
Rank movement Down 285 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,822 | 4,545 | 1.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,843 | 4,923 | 1.67 | +378 bearers (+8.3%) | Down 21 places |
| 2020 | #7,128 | 4,518 | 1.51 | -405 bearers (-8.2%) | Down 285 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 Torgerson 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 | #6,843 | #7,128 | -4.2% |
| Count | 4,923 | 4,518 | -8.2% |
| Per 100K | 1.67 | 1.51 | -9.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Torgerson bearers went from 4,923 to 4,518 (-8.2% change). The surname moved down 285 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,843 to #7,128.
FAQ
Torgerson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Torgerson?
Name Census estimates that about 5,181 living Americans carry the surname Torgerson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 66,156 residents.
How common is Torgerson?
Torgerson ranks #7,128 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.51 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,518 people with the surname Torgerson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,181), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.51 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.51 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Torgerson.
Has Torgerson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Torgerson went from 4,923 recorded bearers to 4,518. That is a decrease of 405 (-8.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,843 to #7,128.
What does the Census say about the background of Torgerson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Torgerson, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.2%) and Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Torgerson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (4,248 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Torgerson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Two or More Races (3.2%), Hispanic (1.8%). 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 Torgerson (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 Torgerson mean?
A patronymic surname of Scandinavian origin, meaning "son of Torger" or "descendent of Thor," the Norse god of thunder. 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 Torgerson (1.51 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 last name Torgerson?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Torgerson on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.