2000
#3,454
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,464
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.51
Uncommon Last name
Lindstrom
A Swedish toponymic surname derived from the words "lind" (lime tree) and "ström" (stream), referring to someone living near a stream lined with lime trees.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 10,735 Americans carry the last name Lindstrom. That puts it at #3,690 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 3.13 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 31,929 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lindstrom 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 Lindstrom with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
11K
1 in 31,929
Census rank
#3,690
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
3.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
9.4K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 9,361 bearers of the surname Lindstrom in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 3.13 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 3690th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindstrom, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lindstrom
The surname Lindstrom originates from Sweden and dates back to the 17th century. It is derived from the Swedish words "lind" meaning lime tree and "strom" meaning stream or small river. The name likely referred to someone who lived near a stream or body of water surrounded by lime trees.
Some of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in Swedish church records and census data from the late 1600s. It was particularly common in the provinces of Smaland and Uppland. Variations in spelling included Lindstroem, Lindstroehm, and Lindstroem.
A notable early bearer of the name was Johan Lindstrom, a Swedish explorer and cartographer who was born in 1692. He was part of an expedition to map the Delaware River Valley in North America in the 1640s.
In the 18th century, the name Lindstrom appeared in several historical records in Sweden, including land deeds and military rolls. One person of note was Carl Lindstrom, a Swedish nobleman and military officer who fought in the Great Northern War against Russia in the early 1700s.
As Swedish emigration to North America increased in the 19th century, the name Lindstrom became more widely dispersed. One of the earliest settlers with this name was Nils Lindstrom, who arrived in Delaware in 1638 as part of the New Sweden colony.
Other notable individuals with the surname Lindstrom include Andrew Lindstrom, a Swedish-American painter and illustrator born in 1856, and Väinö Lindstrom, a Finnish composer and conductor who lived from 1878 to 1939.
The Lindstrom name can also be found in historical records from other Scandinavian countries, such as Norway and Denmark, likely due to migration and cultural exchange between these regions over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lindstrom
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindstrom, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Lindstrom 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 Lindstrom surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.5% · 8,561
- Two or more races3.7% · 348
- Hispanic or Latino3.1% · 291
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 81
- Black or African American0.4% · 41
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 39
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lindstrom
Lindstrom 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
#3,641
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,754
+290 bearers (+3.1%)
Per 100,000 3.31
Rank movement Down 187 places
2020
#3,690
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,361
-393 bearers (-4.0%)
Per 100,000 3.13
Rank movement Down 49 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,454 | 9,464 | 3.51 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,641 | 9,754 | 3.31 | +290 bearers (+3.1%) | Down 187 places |
| 2020 | #3,690 | 9,361 | 3.13 | -393 bearers (-4.0%) | Down 49 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 Lindstrom 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 | #3,641 | #3,690 | -1.3% |
| Count | 9,754 | 9,361 | -4.0% |
| Per 100K | 3.31 | 3.13 | -5.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lindstrom bearers went from 9,754 to 9,361 (-4.0% change). The surname moved down 49 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,641 to #3,690.
FAQ
Lindstrom surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lindstrom?
Name Census estimates that about 10,735 living Americans carry the surname Lindstrom. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 31,929 residents.
How common is Lindstrom?
Lindstrom ranks #3,690 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 3.13 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 9,361 people with the surname Lindstrom. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (10,735), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 3.13 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 3.13 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Lindstrom.
Has Lindstrom become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lindstrom went from 9,754 recorded bearers to 9,361. That is a decrease of 393 (-4.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,641 to #3,690.
What does the Census say about the background of Lindstrom?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindstrom, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.5%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Lindstrom in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.5% (8,561 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lindstrom appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.5%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (3.1%). 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 Lindstrom (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 Lindstrom mean?
A Swedish toponymic surname derived from the words "lind" (lime tree) and "ström" (stream), referring to someone living near a stream lined with lime trees. 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 Lindstrom (3.13 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 Lindstrom?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.