2000
#2,165
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,375
First available Census row
Per 100,000 5.70
Uncommon Last name
Anders
An English and Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning "son of Andrew," derived from the Greek name Andreas, meaning "manly" or "masculine."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 17,074 Americans carry the last name Anders. That puts it at #2,393 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 4.98 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 20,075 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Anders 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Anders with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
17K
1 in 20,075
Census rank
#2,393
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
5.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
15K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 14,889 bearers of the surname Anders in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 4.98 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 2393rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Anders, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Anders
The surname Anders has its origins in Scandinavia, particularly in Sweden and Denmark. It is derived from the Old Norse word "Andres," which is a variant of the name Andreas, meaning "manly" or "brave." The surname is believed to have emerged in the Middle Ages, around the 12th or 13th century.
In Sweden, the name Anders was commonly used as a given name before it became a surname. It gained popularity as a surname during the late medieval period, when it was adopted by families to differentiate themselves from others with the same given name. The earliest recorded instances of the surname Anders can be found in Swedish church records dating back to the 16th century.
One notable example of the name's historical significance is Anders Celsius, the Swedish astronomer and physicist who developed the Celsius temperature scale. He was born in Uppsala, Sweden, in 1701 and died in 1744. Another famous bearer of the surname was Anders Zorn, a renowned Swedish painter and etcher who lived from 1860 to 1920.
In Denmark, the surname Anders also has a long history, with records dating back to the 15th century. One of the earliest known individuals with the surname was Anders Pedersen, a Danish clergyman who lived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. He was known for his work in translating parts of the Bible into Danish.
The surname Anders has also been associated with various place names in Scandinavia. For instance, the town of Anderslöv in southern Sweden is believed to have derived its name from the Old Norse word "Andres" combined with the word "löv," meaning "grove" or "thicket."
Other notable individuals with the surname Anders throughout history include Anders Björk, a Swedish botanist and explorer who lived from 1734 to 1777; Anders Dahl, a Swedish physician and botanist who lived from 1751 to 1789; and Anders Fryxell, a Swedish historian and writer who lived from 1795 to 1881.
While the surname Anders has its roots in Scandinavia, it has since spread to other parts of the world, carried by immigrants and their descendants. However, its origins and historical significance remain deeply rooted in the Nordic countries, where it has been a prominent surname for centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Anders
Among Census respondents with the surname Anders, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Anders 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 Anders surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.0% · 12,500
- Black or African American7.3% · 1,087
- Two or more races4.3% · 638
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 501
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 96
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 67
Timeline
Historical Census data for Anders
Anders 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
#2,343
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 15,554
+179 bearers (+1.2%)
Per 100,000 5.27
Rank movement Down 178 places
2020
#2,393
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 14,889
-665 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 4.98
Rank movement Down 50 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #2,165 | 15,375 | 5.70 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #2,343 | 15,554 | 5.27 | +179 bearers (+1.2%) | Down 178 places |
| 2020 | #2,393 | 14,889 | 4.98 | -665 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 50 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 Anders 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 | #2,343 | #2,393 | -2.1% |
| Count | 15,554 | 14,889 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 5.27 | 4.98 | -5.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Anders bearers went from 15,554 to 14,889 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 50 positions in the national ranking, going from #2,343 to #2,393.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Anders
FAQ
Anders surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Anders?
Name Census estimates that about 17,074 living Americans carry the surname Anders. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 20,075 residents.
How common is Anders?
Anders ranks #2,393 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 4.98 per 100,000 residents, which is about 5 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 14,889 people with the surname Anders. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (17,074), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 4.98 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 4.98 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 5 of them to have the surname Anders.
Has Anders become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Anders went from 15,554 recorded bearers to 14,889. That is a decrease of 665 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #2,343 to #2,393.
What does the Census say about the background of Anders?
Among Census respondents with the surname Anders, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.0%. The next largest groups are Black (7.3%) and Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Anders in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.0% (12,500 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Anders appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.0%), Black (7.3%), Two or More Races (4.3%). 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 Anders (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 Anders mean?
An English and Scandinavian patronymic surname meaning "son of Andrew," derived from the Greek name Andreas, meaning "manly" or "masculine." 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 Anders (4.98 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 common is the surname Anders?
You can see how many people have the last name Anders on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.