# Somerset (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/somerset/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | English |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 510 |
| US rank (2010) | 42,511 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 605,383 people |
| Change since 2000 | +6.7% (478 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈsʌm.ɚ.sɛt/, 3 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From Old English Sumorsǣte, which is short for Sumortūnsǣte, meaning "the people living at or dependent upon Sumortūn (Somerton)". An alternative suggestion is that the name derives from *Seo-mere-sætan meaning "settlers by the sea lakes".

## Who carries it

Share of people named Somerset in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 76% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 19% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 2.0% |
| Two or more races | 2.5% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Somerset in the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and the Kingdom of Great Britain.

## People named Somerset

- Mary Somerset, Duchess of Beaufort, (1897-1987); British noblewoman
- Lord Edward Somerset, British Army general (1776-1842)
- Henry Somerset, 9th Duke of Beaufort, British Army officer and peer (1847–1924)

## Similar surnames

Sommers, Somers, Summers, Simmers, Siemers, Summerhays.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.