2000
#146,011
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Worlund
A Scandinavian surname denoting a person from a place name containing elements meaning "hill" or "ridge".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 139 Americans carry the last name Worlund. That puts it at #141,309 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,465,859 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Worlund 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
139
1 in 2,465,859
Census rank
#141,309
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
121
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 121 bearers of the surname Worlund in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 141309th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Worlund, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Worlund
The surname Worlund is believed to have originated from Northern Europe, likely in the Scandinavian region, specifically around present-day Denmark or Sweden, during the Middle Ages. The name is derived from Old Norse roots, combining two elements: "vór," meaning cautious or careful, and "lund," meaning grove or small woodland. This would suggest the meaning of the surname Worlund as "the careful one associated with the grove."
Worlund appears to be a relatively rare surname with limited historical references. One of the earliest documented instances of the name can be traced to a 14th-century Danish parish record, wherein a Hans Worlund is listed as a landholder in the region of Jutland around the year 1372. The name also appears in some early Swedish manuscripts in the 15th century, particularly in regions known today as Skåne and Halland, which were once part of Denmark.
A notable early bearer of the surname was Erik Worlund, a merchant in Malmö, born around 1455 and active until his death in 1520. He played a significant role in the Hanseatic League, an influential commercial and defensive confederation of merchant guilds and market towns in Northwestern and Central Europe. Another prominent individual was Inge Worlund, who served as a councilman in the city of Gothenburg in the early 1600s, notably contributing to the administrative reforms of the city around 1620.
The surname Worlund also appears in migration records during the 18th and 19th centuries. Lars Worlund, born in 1783 in Århus, Denmark, emigrated to the United States in 1803. He became a well-known figure in the state of Pennsylvania and contributed to local politics and community building until his death in 1847.
An interesting appearance of the surname can be found in the records of the Napoleonic Wars. Niels Worlund, born in 1770, was noted as a soldier in the Danish army who fought in several campaigns from 1792 until 1815. He was mentioned in the military dispatches for his exceptional bravery during the Battle of Leipzig in 1813.
Finally, in more recent historical references, we find Johan Worlund, born in 1892 in Stockholm, Sweden. He was an influential industrialist who played a significant role in the early 20th-century Swedish steel industry. His contributions to the industrial sector were highly recognized until his death in 1965.
These instances illustrate the historical depth and geographical spread of the surname Worlund, revealing its Scandinavian roots and shining a light on some of the notable figures who carried this surname through different periods and regions.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Worlund
Among Census respondents with the surname Worlund, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Worlund 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 Worlund surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 107
- Two or more races5.0% · 6
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.7% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Worlund
Worlund 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
#139,228
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+16 bearers (+15.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 6,783 places
2020
#141,309
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 121
+1 bearers (+0.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,081 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #146,011 | 104 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #139,228 | 120 | 0.04 | +16 bearers (+15.4%) | Up 6,783 places |
| 2020 | #141,309 | 121 | 0.04 | +1 bearers (+0.8%) | Down 2,081 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 Worlund 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 | #139,228 | #141,309 | -1.5% |
| Count | 120 | 121 | 0.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Worlund bearers went from 120 to 121 (+0.8% change). The surname moved down 2,081 positions in the national ranking, going from #139,228 to #141,309.
FAQ
Worlund surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Worlund?
Name Census estimates that about 139 living Americans carry the surname Worlund. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,465,859 residents.
How common is Worlund?
Worlund ranks #141,309 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 121 people with the surname Worlund. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (139), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Worlund.
Has Worlund become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Worlund went from 120 recorded bearers to 121. That is an increase of 1 (+0.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #139,228 to #141,309.
What does the Census say about the background of Worlund?
Among Census respondents with the surname Worlund, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (5.0%) and Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Worlund in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Worlund appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Two or More Races (5.0%), Hispanic (4.1%). 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 Worlund (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 Worlund mean?
A Scandinavian surname denoting a person from a place name containing elements meaning "hill" or "ridge". 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 Worlund (0.04 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 Worlund?
You can see how common the surname Worlund is on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.