Explore the Family Name Solem

The meaning of Solem

Norwegian: habitational name from thirty or more farmsteads, notably in Trøndelag, from Old Norse Sólheimr (see Solheim). Some characteristic forenames: Scandinavian Anders, Selmer, Sigfred.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Solem in the United States?

According to data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname Solem saw a slight dip in popularity between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 18,473 in terms of prevalence, but by 2010, it had slipped to 19,275—a decrease of 4.34 percent. However, the total count of people with this surname rose slightly during the same period, from 1,380 to 1,406, marking an increase of 1.88 percent. The proportion of individuals with the surname Solem per 100,000 people also dropped by 5.88 percent.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#18,473	#19,275	-4.34%
Count	1,380	1,406	1.88%
Proportion per 100k	0.51	0.48	-5.88%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Solem

When it comes to ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data shows that the majority of people with the surname Solem identified as White, though this percentage decreased from 97.03 percent in 2000 to 94.31 percent in 2010. Meanwhile, other ethnic identities saw increases. Individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander increased from 0.80 percent to 1.21 percent, and those reporting two or more races rose from 1.01 percent to 1.85 percent. There were also notable increases among those identifying as Hispanic (from 0.87 percent to 1.42 percent) and American Indian and Alaskan Native (from 0 percent to 0.78 percent). A small percentage (0.43 percent) identified as Black in 2010; this category was not represented in the 2000 data.

	2000	2010	Change
White	97.03%	94.31%	-2.8%
Two or More Races	1.01%	1.85%	83.17%
Hispanic	0.87%	1.42%	63.22%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0.8%	1.21%	51.25%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0.78%	0%
Black	0%	0.43%	0%