2000
#351
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 80,936
First available Census row
Per 100,000 30.00
Uncommon Last name
Erickson
Son of Eric, derived from the Scandinavian personal name Erik, meaning "eternal ruler" or "ever powerful."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 90,371 Americans carry the last name Erickson. That puts it at #402 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 26.37 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,793 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Erickson 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 Erickson with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
90K
1 in 3,793
Census rank
#402
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
26.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
79K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 78,808 bearers of the surname Erickson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 26.37 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 402nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Erickson, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Erickson
The surname Erickson is of Scandinavian origin, derived from the personal name Erik combined with the patronymic suffix "-son", meaning "son of Erik". The name Erik itself is derived from the Old Norse name Eiríkr, which is thought to be a compound of the elements "ei" meaning "ever" or "always" and "rik" meaning "ruler" or "prince".
The name Erickson can be traced back to the Viking era in Scandinavia, particularly in the regions of modern-day Sweden, Norway, and Denmark. It is believed that the name first emerged as a patronymic, identifying individuals as the sons of someone named Erik. Early examples of the name can be found in Old Norse sagas and medieval records from the region.
One of the earliest documented references to the name Erickson is found in the Icelandic Landnámabók (Book of Settlements), which records the names of the Norse settlers who arrived in Iceland during the 9th and 10th centuries. In this text, several individuals are mentioned bearing the name Eiríksson, the Old Norse form of Erickson.
As the Scandinavian influence spread across Europe and beyond, the name Erickson began to appear in various spellings and regional variations. In England, for instance, it was sometimes rendered as Ericson or Erikson, while in other parts of Europe, it took on forms such as Eriksson or Eriksen.
One notable figure bearing the surname Erickson was the Swedish explorer and colonizer Johan Eriksson Lejonhufvud (1540-1617), who founded the colony of New Sweden along the Delaware River in present-day Delaware, Pennsylvania, and New Jersey. Another famous Erickson was the Swedish botanist and zoologist Johan Eriksson (1756-1837), who made significant contributions to the study of fungi and lichens.
Other notable individuals with the surname Erickson include the American writer and academic John R. Erickson (born 1941), best known for his Hank the Cowdog children's book series, and the American basketball player and coach Dick Erickson (1921-2007), who coached at several universities and in the NBA.
In modern times, the surname Erickson remains prevalent in Scandinavia and among individuals of Scandinavian descent worldwide, serving as a reminder of the rich cultural heritage and history associated with this name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Erickson
Among Census respondents with the surname Erickson, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Erickson 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 Erickson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 72,832
- Two or more races3.0% · 2,350
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 2,267
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 629
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 396
- Black or African American0.4% · 334
Timeline
Historical Census data for Erickson
Erickson 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
#389
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 82,085
+1,149 bearers (+1.4%)
Per 100,000 27.83
Rank movement Down 38 places
2020
#402
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 78,808
-3,277 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 26.37
Rank movement Down 13 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #351 | 80,936 | 30.00 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #389 | 82,085 | 27.83 | +1,149 bearers (+1.4%) | Down 38 places |
| 2020 | #402 | 78,808 | 26.37 | -3,277 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 13 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 Erickson 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 | #389 | #402 | -3.3% |
| Count | 82,085 | 78,808 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 27.83 | 26.37 | -5.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Erickson bearers went from 82,085 to 78,808 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 13 positions in the national ranking, going from #389 to #402.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Erickson
FAQ
Erickson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Erickson?
Name Census estimates that about 90,371 living Americans carry the surname Erickson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,793 residents.
How common is Erickson?
Erickson ranks #402 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 26.37 per 100,000 residents, which is about 26 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 78,808 people with the surname Erickson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (90,371), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 26.37 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 26.37 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 26 of them to have the surname Erickson.
Has Erickson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Erickson went from 82,085 recorded bearers to 78,808. That is a decrease of 3,277 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #389 to #402.
What does the Census say about the background of Erickson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Erickson, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Erickson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (72,832 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Erickson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Erickson (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 Erickson mean?
Son of Eric, derived from the Scandinavian personal name Erik, meaning "eternal ruler" or "ever powerful." 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 Erickson (26.37 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 have the surname Erickson?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.