Explore the Family Name Swinger

The meaning of Swinger

1. English: occupational name, perhaps for a fuller, who finished cloth by beating it and stretching it on tenters. Middle English swyngere is not independently recorded but it appears to be an agent derivative of Middle English swingen ‘to beat, strike, punish, afflict (something)’. Compare the synonymous Tucker, an agent derivative of Middle English tuken ‘to torment, beat’. The earliest bearers of the name Swinger were wealthy townsmen. 2. In some instances probably an Americanized form of German and Jewish (Ashkenazic) Schwinger, or German Zwinger, a nickname from Middle High German zwinger ‘oppressor’.

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

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

The surname Swinger demonstrates a decrease in popularity based on the Decennial U.S. Census data from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Swinger ranked as the 31,738th most popular surname, but by 2010 it had fallen to the 39,052nd spot, marking a significant drop of 23.04%. The count of individuals bearing the Swinger surname also declined during this period, falling from 688 to 564, a decrease of 18.02%. The proportion of the U.S. population with the surname Swinger per 100,000 people likewise saw a decline from 0.26 to 0.19, equating to a fall of 26.92%.

20002010Change
Rank#31,738#39,052-23.04%
Count688564-18.02%
Proportion per 100k0.260.19-26.92%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Swinger

In terms of ethnic identity, the Swinger surname saw shifts between 2000 and 2010 according to the Decennial U.S. Census data. In 2000, individuals who identified as White made up 61.05% of those with the Swinger surname, while those identifying as Black accounted for 35.90%. However, by 2010, these proportions had shifted to 52.48% and 43.62% respectively, representing a decrease of 14.04% in the White demographic and an increase of 21.50% in the Black demographic. The surname did not appear among individuals identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year. Individuals identifying as being of two or more races were present in 2000, making up 2.03% of the Swinglers, but were absent in 2010. Furthermore, individuals identifying as Hispanic emerged in 2010, accounting for 2.48% of the population with this surname.

20002010Change
White61.05%52.48%-14.04%
Black35.9%43.62%21.5%
Hispanic0%2.48%0%
Asian/Pacific Islander0%0%0%
Two or More Races2.03%0%0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native0%0%0%