2000
#143,847
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 106
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Melgren
A Swedish surname derived from the Old Norse words "mel" (meal or flour) and "gren" (branch), possibly referring to an ancestor's occupation.
According to the 2010 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 103 Americans carry the last name Melgren. That puts it at #160,975 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,327,712 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Melgren 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.
Melgren appeared in the 2010 Census surname file but was not included in the published 2020 file. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames with at least 100 recorded bearers, so this usually means the name fell below that threshold.
Bearers in the US
103
1 in 3,327,712
Census rank
#160,975
2010 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
100
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 100 bearers of the surname Melgren in its 2010 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 160975th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Melgren, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%.
Origin
Meaning and origin of Melgren
The surname Melgren has its origins in Scandinavia, particularly in Sweden and Norway, dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old Norse words "mel" meaning "meal" or "flour" and "gren" meaning "branch" or "twig." This combination suggests that the name may have been initially associated with individuals involved in the milling or flour trade, or perhaps those living near a mill or in a location surrounded by trees or branches.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Melgren can be found in the Swedish Census of 1540, where a family with this surname was registered in the village of Tällberg, located in the province of Dalarna. The name also appears in Norwegian church records from the late 16th century, with entries for individuals bearing the name Melgren in the parish of Voss, located in the county of Vestland.
In the 17th century, a notable figure with the surname Melgren was Johan Melgren (1600-1672), a Swedish merchant and ship owner who played a significant role in the development of trade routes between Sweden and the Netherlands. His descendants continued to be involved in maritime trade, and the name Melgren became closely associated with this profession in various coastal regions of Scandinavia.
Another individual of historical importance was Anna Melgren (1720-1795), a Norwegian landowner and philanthropist. She inherited substantial landholdings in the region of Trøndelag and was known for her generous support of local churches and educational institutions. Her legacy can still be traced through various endowments and charitable foundations that bear her name.
In the 19th century, the Melgren surname gained prominence in the field of academia, with notable figures such as Professor Erik Melgren (1825-1891), a renowned linguist and scholar of Old Norse literature at the University of Uppsala in Sweden. His seminal work, "The Origins of Old Norse Poetry," published in 1865, is still widely referenced by scholars in the field of Scandinavian studies.
Additionally, Carl Melgren (1879-1944), a Norwegian-born engineer and inventor, made significant contributions to the development of early aviation technology. He held several patents for aircraft design and was instrumental in establishing one of the first commercial aviation companies in the United States, known as the Melgren Aeronautical Corporation, based in New York City.
Throughout its history, the surname Melgren has been closely associated with various professions, from trade and commerce to academia and innovation, reflecting the diverse paths taken by those who bore this name across Scandinavia and beyond.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Melgren
Among Census respondents with the surname Melgren, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%.
The bar chart below shows how Melgren bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2010 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 Melgren surname at the time of the 2010 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.0%
- Unknown or suppressed5.0%
Timeline
Historical Census data for Melgren
Melgren appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
-6 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 17,128 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #143,847 | 106 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | -6 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 17,128 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
2000 vs 2010 Census
How has the Melgren surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20002010
| Metric | 2000 | 2010 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #143,847 | #160,975 | -11.9% |
| Count | 106 | 100 | -5.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -25.0% |
Between the 2000 and 2010 Census, the number of Melgren bearers went from 106 to 100 (-5.7% change). The surname moved down 17,128 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,847 to #160,975.
FAQ
Melgren surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Melgren?
Name Census estimates that about 103 living Americans carry the surname Melgren. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,327,712 residents.
How common is Melgren?
Melgren ranks #160,975 in the 2010 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 2010 Census file counted 100 people with the surname Melgren. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (103), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Melgren.
Has Melgren become more or less common over time?
Between 2000 and 2010, the surname Melgren went from 106 recorded bearers to 100. That is a decrease of 6 (-5.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,847 to #160,975.
What does the Census say about the background of Melgren?
Among Census respondents with the surname Melgren, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.0%. These figures come from the 2010 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 Melgren in the 2010 Census, accounting for 95.0%.
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Melgren appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2010 file are White (95.0%).
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Not necessarily. Melgren appears here with 2010 Census data, while the latest surname file loaded on Name Census is 2020. When a surname drops below the Census publication threshold, older rows can still be kept for historical reference even if the name no longer appears in the newest file.
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 Melgren mean?
A Swedish surname derived from the Old Norse words "mel" (meal or flour) and "gren" (branch), possibly referring to an ancestor's occupation. 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 2010 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 Melgren (0.03 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 Melgren?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.