2000
#36,761
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 573
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.21
Very Rare Last name
Bensman
A surname indicating the bearer was the son of a man named Ben.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 725 Americans carry the last name Bensman. That puts it at #37,808 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 472,765 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bensman 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
725
1 in 472,765
Census rank
#37,808
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
632
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 632 bearers of the surname Bensman in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 37808th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bensman, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bensman
The surname Bensman has its origins in the Netherlands and dates back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Dutch words "benne" meaning basket or container, and "man" referring to a person. This suggests the name may have originally referred to an occupation or trade involving the making or selling of baskets.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bensman can be found in the Dutch city of Haarlem, where a certain Dirck Bensman was listed as a resident in 1596. In nearby Amsterdam, records show a Pieter Bensman living there in 1612. These early mentions indicate the name was concentrated in the western provinces of the Netherlands during this time period.
By the 17th century, the Bensman name had spread to other parts of the Dutch Republic. A notable example is Jacob Bensman, born in 1639 in the city of Utrecht, who became a respected merchant and alderman. His grandson, also named Jacob Bensman (1698-1772), was a prominent lawyer and served as a judge in the Court of Holland.
As the Dutch established colonies and trading outposts around the world, the Bensman name began to appear in various far-flung locales. For instance, in 1675, a Jan Bensman is recorded as residing in Batavia, the Dutch East Indies (present-day Jakarta, Indonesia). Another early instance is Willem Bensman, born in 1682 in Nieuw Amsterdam (later renamed New York City).
Other notable individuals with the surname Bensman include:
1) Hendrik Bensman (1715-1790), a Dutch painter known for his landscape and maritime scenes.
2) Pieter Bensman (1763-1809), a Dutch military officer who fought in the Napoleonic Wars.
3) Johannes Bensman (1801-1868), a Dutch-born American industrialist who founded a successful textile manufacturing company in Pennsylvania.
4) Wilhelmina Bensman (1837-1917), a Dutch author and poet who wrote under the pen name "Vrouwe Courtmans."
5) Cornelis Bensman (1856-1933), a Dutch architect and urban planner involved in the development of several cities in the Netherlands and its colonies.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bensman
Among Census respondents with the surname Bensman, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) and Two or More Races (4.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Bensman 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 Bensman surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.4% · 559
- Hispanic or Latino5.2% · 33
- Two or more races4.3% · 27
- Black or African American0.9% · 6
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 6
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bensman
Bensman 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
#36,838
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 606
+33 bearers (+5.8%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 77 places
2020
#37,808
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 632
+26 bearers (+4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 970 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #36,761 | 573 | 0.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #36,838 | 606 | 0.21 | +33 bearers (+5.8%) | Down 77 places |
| 2020 | #37,808 | 632 | 0.21 | +26 bearers (+4.3%) | Down 970 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 Bensman 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 | #36,838 | #37,808 | -2.6% |
| Count | 606 | 632 | 4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.21 | 0.21 | 0.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bensman bearers went from 606 to 632 (+4.3% change). The surname moved down 970 positions in the national ranking, going from #36,838 to #37,808.
FAQ
Bensman surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bensman?
Name Census estimates that about 725 living Americans carry the surname Bensman. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 472,765 residents.
How common is Bensman?
Bensman ranks #37,808 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 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 632 people with the surname Bensman. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (725), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 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 Bensman.
Has Bensman become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bensman went from 606 recorded bearers to 632. That is an increase of 26 (+4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #36,838 to #37,808.
What does the Census say about the background of Bensman?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bensman, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (5.2%) 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 Bensman in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.4% (559 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bensman appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.4%), Hispanic (5.2%), 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 Bensman (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 Bensman mean?
A surname indicating the bearer was the son of a man named Ben. 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 Bensman (0.21 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 Americans have the surname Bensman?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.