2000
#4,292
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,641
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.83
Rare Last name
Swearingen
An English occupational surname referring to a keeper of pigs or hogs, derived from the Old English "swēora" meaning "herdsman."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 8,572 Americans carry the last name Swearingen. That puts it at #4,605 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.50 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 39,985 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Swearingen 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
8.6K
1 in 39,985
Census rank
#4,605
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
7.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 7,475 bearers of the surname Swearingen in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.50 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4605th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Swearingen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Swearingen
The surname Swearingen is of German origin, derived from the Old German words "sweren" meaning "to swear" and "ingen" meaning "people" or "settlement." It likely originated in the region of modern-day Germany in the 12th or 13th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus, a collection of historical documents from Germany, where a "Swerngin" is mentioned as a witness to a land transaction in the year 1269.
The name may have been initially given to someone who had a reputation for swearing or taking oaths frequently, or it could have referred to a group of people who lived in a settlement where oaths were commonly taken, perhaps near a court or place of legal proceedings.
In the 14th century, the name appears in various forms such as "Sweringen," "Sweringin," and "Sweringen" in records from the regions of Bavaria and Saxony.
One notable bearer of the Swearingen name was Johannes Swearingen, a German monk and scholar who lived from 1492 to 1557. He was known for his writings on theology and his contributions to the Protestant Reformation.
Another notable figure was Thomas Swearingen, born in 1695 in Hesse, Germany, who immigrated to colonial America in the early 18th century and settled in what is now Loudoun County, Virginia. He and his descendants played a significant role in the early settlement and development of that region.
In the United States, the Swearingen name can be traced back to the 18th century, with many immigrants arriving from various parts of Germany and Switzerland. Some early bearers of the name include Jacob Swearingen, born in 1725 in Pennsylvania, and Michael Swearingen, born in 1730 in Virginia.
The Swearingen name was also present in the American Civil War, with several individuals serving in both the Union and Confederate armies, such as Captain John Swearingen, who served in the 6th Ohio Volunteer Cavalry Regiment for the Union.
Throughout its history, the Swearingen surname has been associated with various occupations and professions, including farming, law, education, and military service.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Swearingen
Among Census respondents with the surname Swearingen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Swearingen 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 Swearingen surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White88.8% · 6,641
- Two or more races4.1% · 307
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 279
- Black or African American2.1% · 160
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 46
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 42
Timeline
Historical Census data for Swearingen
Swearingen 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
#4,506
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,872
+231 bearers (+3.0%)
Per 100,000 2.67
Rank movement Down 214 places
2020
#4,605
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,475
-397 bearers (-5.0%)
Per 100,000 2.50
Rank movement Down 99 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,292 | 7,641 | 2.83 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,506 | 7,872 | 2.67 | +231 bearers (+3.0%) | Down 214 places |
| 2020 | #4,605 | 7,475 | 2.50 | -397 bearers (-5.0%) | Down 99 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 Swearingen 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 | #4,506 | #4,605 | -2.2% |
| Count | 7,872 | 7,475 | -5.0% |
| Per 100K | 2.67 | 2.50 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Swearingen bearers went from 7,872 to 7,475 (-5.0% change). The surname moved down 99 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,506 to #4,605.
FAQ
Swearingen surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Swearingen?
Name Census estimates that about 8,572 living Americans carry the surname Swearingen. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 39,985 residents.
How common is Swearingen?
Swearingen ranks #4,605 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.50 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 7,475 people with the surname Swearingen. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (8,572), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.5 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.50 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 Swearingen.
Has Swearingen become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Swearingen went from 7,872 recorded bearers to 7,475. That is a decrease of 397 (-5.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,506 to #4,605.
What does the Census say about the background of Swearingen?
Among Census respondents with the surname Swearingen, the largest self-reported group is White at 88.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Swearingen in the 2020 Census, accounting for 88.8% (6,641 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Swearingen appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (88.8%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Swearingen (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 Swearingen mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a keeper of pigs or hogs, derived from the Old English "swēora" meaning "herdsman." 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 Swearingen (2.50 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 last name Swearingen?
You can see how many people have the last name Swearingen on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.