Explore the Family Name Swem
The meaning of Swem
Americanized form of German Schwemm, a topographic name from Middle High German swem(me), denoting a deep ford where horses had to swim across, from the Middle High German verb swemmen, causative of swimmen ‘to float or swim’.
Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.
How common is the last name Swem in the United States?
Based on data from the Decennial U.S. Census, the surname "Swem" has seen a slight dip in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Swem was ranked 56,979th most popular and by 2010, it had slipped to 65,782nd, marking a decrease of 15.45%. The actual count of people with this surname also dropped by 10.15% during this period, from 335 individuals in 2000 to 301 in 2010. Consequently, the proportion of people named Swem per 100,000 people in the U.S. population fell by 16.67%, from 0.12 to 0.1.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #56,979 | #65,782 | -15.45% |
| Count | 335 | 301 | -10.15% |
| Proportion per 100k | 0.12 | 0.1 | -16.67% |
Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Swem
Looking at the ethnic identity of those who carry the surname Swem based on the Decennial U.S. Census, there have been some minor changes between 2000 and 2010. In 2000, the majority of individuals with the last name Swem identified as White (94.63%) and this percentage increased slightly to 96.01% in 2010. There were no recorded individuals who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander, Hispanic, or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either year. Interestingly, while there was a small percentage (2.99%) that identified as having two or more races in 2000, this category dropped to zero by 2010. Meanwhile, there was a new appearance of Black ethnicity within this surname group in 2010, accounting for 1.66% of the Swem population, where this category had not been represented in 2000.
| 2000 | 2010 | Change | |
|---|---|---|---|
| White | 94.63% | 96.01% | 1.46% |
| Black | 0% | 1.66% | 0% |
| Asian/Pacific Islander | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| Two or More Races | 2.99% | 0% | -100% |
| Hispanic | 0% | 0% | 0% |
| American Indian and Alaskan Native | 0% | 0% | 0% |