2000
#12,189
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,344
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.87
Rare Last name
Gabrielson
Son of Gabriel, a patronymic surname derived from the given name Gabriel, meaning "God is my strength."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,495 Americans carry the last name Gabrielson. That puts it at #13,383 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.73 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 137,376 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gabrielson 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
2.5K
1 in 137,376
Census rank
#13,383
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,176 bearers of the surname Gabrielson in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.73 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13383rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gabrielson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gabrielson
The surname Gabrielson has its origins in Sweden and is derived from the personal name Gabriel, which comes from the Hebrew name meaning "God is my strength". The earliest recorded examples of this surname date back to the 17th century in various parts of Sweden.
Gabrielson is a patronymic surname, meaning it was originally formed by adding the suffix "-son" to the father's given name, Gabriel. This naming convention was common in Scandinavian countries, particularly Sweden, where it was used to identify someone as the son of a person with a particular given name.
In the 18th and 19th centuries, Gabrielson became more widely adopted as a fixed surname, rather than a name that changed with each generation. During this time, the name began to appear in various Swedish records, such as church registers and census records.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname Gabrielson was Johan Gabrielson, a Swedish farmer born in 1674 in the village of Ekeby, Östergötland. Another notable early bearer of the name was Nils Gabrielson, a Swedish soldier who served in the Kalmar Regiment during the Great Northern War (1700-1721).
In the 19th century, the surname Gabrielson was found in various parts of Sweden, including the regions of Småland, Västergötland, and Östergötland. Some individuals with this surname during this period included Anders Gabrielson (1815-1887), a Swedish farmer and landowner from Jönköping County, and Carl Gabrielson (1836-1901), a Swedish businessman and factory owner from Gothenburg.
As Swedish immigration to North America increased in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, the surname Gabrielson also became more common in countries like the United States and Canada. One notable individual with this surname was Emil Gabrielson (1878-1961), a Swedish-American businessman who served as the president of the Studebaker Corporation in South Bend, Indiana, from 1935 to 1948.
Overall, the surname Gabrielson has a long history in Sweden, dating back several centuries, and has since spread to other parts of the world through immigration and migration.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gabrielson
Among Census respondents with the surname Gabrielson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Gabrielson 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 Gabrielson surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 2,030
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 71
- Two or more races1.8% · 39
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 14
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gabrielson
Gabrielson 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
#12,986
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,364
+20 bearers (+0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.80
Rank movement Down 797 places
2020
#13,383
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,176
-188 bearers (-8.0%)
Per 100,000 0.73
Rank movement Down 397 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,189 | 2,344 | 0.87 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,986 | 2,364 | 0.80 | +20 bearers (+0.9%) | Down 797 places |
| 2020 | #13,383 | 2,176 | 0.73 | -188 bearers (-8.0%) | Down 397 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 Gabrielson 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 | #12,986 | #13,383 | -3.1% |
| Count | 2,364 | 2,176 | -8.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.80 | 0.73 | -9.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gabrielson bearers went from 2,364 to 2,176 (-8.0% change). The surname moved down 397 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,986 to #13,383.
FAQ
Gabrielson surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gabrielson?
Name Census estimates that about 2,495 living Americans carry the surname Gabrielson. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 137,376 residents.
How common is Gabrielson?
Gabrielson ranks #13,383 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.73 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,176 people with the surname Gabrielson. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,495), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.73 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.73 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Gabrielson.
Has Gabrielson become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gabrielson went from 2,364 recorded bearers to 2,176. That is a decrease of 188 (-8.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,986 to #13,383.
What does the Census say about the background of Gabrielson?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gabrielson, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Gabrielson in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (2,030 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gabrielson appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Hispanic (3.3%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Gabrielson (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 Gabrielson mean?
Son of Gabriel, a patronymic surname derived from the given name Gabriel, meaning "God is my strength." 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 Gabrielson (0.73 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 share the surname Gabrielson?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.