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

Torgeson, 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 Torgeson surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Torgeson in America

Torgeson is the 35866th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Torgeson surname appeared 626 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 Torgeson.

We can also compare 2010 data for Torgeson 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 Torgeson

The surname TORGESON is of Scandinavian origin, specifically from Norway and Sweden. It is believed to have emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century. The name is a patronymic surname, meaning it was derived from the given name of the father or an ancestor.

TORGESON is thought to be derived from the Old Norse personal name Þórgeirr, which is a compound name consisting of the elements "Þórr" (the name of the Norse god of thunder) and "geirr" (meaning "spear"). This name likely referred to someone who was a skilled spearman or warrior associated with the god Thor.

The earliest known record of the surname TORGESON dates back to the late 16th century in Norwegian parish records. One of the earliest documented individuals with this name was Torger Torgeson, a farmer who lived in the village of Lom in central Norway in the early 1600s.

In Sweden, the spelling TORGESON emerged in the 17th century as a result of Swedish name reforms that standardized patronymic surnames. One of the earliest recorded Swedish individuals with this name was Johan Torgeson, a soldier born in Västergötland in 1675.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals with the surname TORGESON. One of the most prominent was Arne Torgeson (1888-1957), a Norwegian-American author and journalist who wrote extensively about Scandinavian-American culture and history. Another notable figure was Thorvald Torgeson (1858-1935), a Norwegian-American businessman and politician who served as mayor of Benson, Minnesota in the early 20th century.

Other historical figures with the surname TORGESON include Olaf Torgeson (1819-1901), a Norwegian immigrant to the United States and one of the founders of the town of Stoughton, Wisconsin; and Ingrid Torgeson (1892-1978), a Swedish-American artist known for her landscape paintings depicting the American Midwest.

While the surname TORGESON is relatively uncommon, it has a rich history rooted in the cultural traditions and naming practices of Scandinavia. The name's connection to the Norse god Thor and its association with warriors and skilled spearmen add to its cultural significance.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Torgeson

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

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

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

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