2000
#7,587
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,041
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.50
Rare Last name
Gaeta
A locational surname referring to someone from the Italian town of Gaeta.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,056 Americans carry the last name Gaeta. That puts it at #7,292 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.48 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 67,792 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gaeta 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
5.1K
1 in 67,792
Census rank
#7,292
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.5
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.4K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,409 bearers of the surname Gaeta in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.48 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7292nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaeta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 56.1%. The next largest groups are White (41.7%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gaeta
The surname Gaeta is of Italian origin, tracing its roots back to the 11th century in the town of Gaeta, located in the province of Latina, in the Lazio region of central Italy. The name is derived from the Latin word "Caieta," which was the ancient name for the town of Gaeta.
The town of Gaeta has a rich history dating back to the Roman era, and it was mentioned in various ancient texts and manuscripts, including the writings of the Roman poet Virgil, who referred to it as "Caieta" in his epic poem the Aeneid. The name is also recorded in the Codex Diplomaticus Cavensis, a collection of medieval documents from the Campania region of Italy.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Gaeta can be found in the Libro d'Oro della Nobiltà Napoletana, a genealogical record of noble families in Naples, which mentions a Gaetano Gaeta in the 14th century. Another notable figure with this surname was Geronimo Gaeta, a 16th-century Italian painter known for his religious works.
The Gaeta surname is also associated with several place names, such as the town of Gaeta itself, as well as the nearby town of Formia, which was once known as "Gaeta Vecchia" or "Old Gaeta." These place names, along with variations like "Gaietano" and "Gaietta," reflect the evolution of the surname over time.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the Gaeta surname, including:
1. Raffaele Gaeta (1802-1860), an Italian politician and statesman who served as the Minister of Finance in the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
2. Domenico Gaeta (1759-1836), an Italian architect and engineer who designed several notable buildings in Naples.
3. Giuseppe Gaeta (1834-1913), an Italian painter known for his landscapes and genre scenes.
4. Nicola Gaeta (1892-1951), an Italian diplomat who served as the Italian Ambassador to the Soviet Union during World War II.
5. Pietro Gaeta (1792-1869), an Italian mathematician and physicist who made significant contributions to the field of celestial mechanics.
The surname Gaeta has a rich historical legacy, reflecting the cultural and geographical influences of the Italian peninsula, particularly the regions of Lazio and Campania.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gaeta
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaeta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 56.1%. The next largest groups are White (41.7%) and Two or More Races (1.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Gaeta 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 Gaeta surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino56.1% · 2,475
- White41.7% · 1,838
- Two or more races1.1% · 50
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 26
- Black or African American0.3% · 15
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gaeta
Gaeta 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
#7,133
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,688
+647 bearers (+16.0%)
Per 100,000 1.59
Rank movement Up 454 places
2020
#7,292
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,409
-279 bearers (-6.0%)
Per 100,000 1.48
Rank movement Down 159 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,587 | 4,041 | 1.50 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,133 | 4,688 | 1.59 | +647 bearers (+16.0%) | Up 454 places |
| 2020 | #7,292 | 4,409 | 1.48 | -279 bearers (-6.0%) | Down 159 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 Gaeta 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 | #7,133 | #7,292 | -2.2% |
| Count | 4,688 | 4,409 | -6.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.59 | 1.48 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gaeta bearers went from 4,688 to 4,409 (-6.0% change). The surname moved down 159 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,133 to #7,292.
FAQ
Gaeta surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gaeta?
Name Census estimates that about 5,056 living Americans carry the surname Gaeta. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 67,792 residents.
How common is Gaeta?
Gaeta ranks #7,292 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.48 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 4,409 people with the surname Gaeta. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,056), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.48 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.48 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 Gaeta.
Has Gaeta become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gaeta went from 4,688 recorded bearers to 4,409. That is a decrease of 279 (-6.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,133 to #7,292.
What does the Census say about the background of Gaeta?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaeta, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 56.1%. The next largest groups are White (41.7%) and Two or More Races (1.1%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Gaeta in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.1% (2,475 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gaeta appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (56.1%), White (41.7%), Two or More Races (1.1%). 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 Gaeta (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 Gaeta mean?
A locational surname referring to someone from the Italian town of Gaeta. 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 Gaeta (1.48 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 Americans have the surname Gaeta?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.