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

Vik, 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 Vik surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Vik in America

Vik is the 27869th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Vik surname appeared 861 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 Vik.

We can also compare 2010 data for Vik 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 Vik

The surname Vik is of Scandinavian origin, specifically from Norway. It is believed to have originated during the Viking Age, which lasted from the late 8th century to the late 11th century.

The name Vik is derived from the Old Norse word "vik," which means "inlet" or "bay." It likely referred to someone who lived near a bay or inlet, or someone who worked as a seafarer or fisherman in these areas.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Vik can be found in the Landnámabók, an Icelandic book detailing the settlement of Iceland in the 9th and 10th centuries. The book mentions a man named Snorri Vik, who was among the first settlers in Iceland.

Another early reference to the name Vik can be found in the Saga of Erik the Red, which tells the story of Erik the Red, the famous Viking explorer who discovered Greenland. The saga mentions a man named Bjarni Vik, who was one of Erik's companions on his voyages.

In the 13th century, a man named Eirik Vik was mentioned in the Norwegian Diplom, a collection of medieval Norwegian documents. He was a landowner and farmer in the region of Trøndelag, Norway.

One of the most famous historical figures with the surname Vik was Sigurd Vik, a Norwegian naval officer and explorer who lived in the late 19th century. He was born in 1855 and died in 1932. Sigurd Vik led several expeditions to the Arctic and Antarctic regions and was known for his expertise in navigation and exploration.

Another notable person with the surname Vik was Olav Vik, a Norwegian painter and sculptor who lived from 1887 to 1973. He was known for his depictions of Norwegian landscapes and traditional life, and his works can be found in various museums and galleries in Norway.

In the 20th century, Arne Vik was a renowned Norwegian chess player who won the Norwegian Chess Championship several times between the 1930s and 1950s. He was born in 1909 and died in 1992.

Additionally, Rolf Vik, born in 1906 and died in 1990, was a Norwegian cross-country skier who won several medals in the Winter Olympics and World Championships in the 1930s and 1940s.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Vik

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

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

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

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