2000
#139,757
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 110
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Gaetjens
A surname of German origin meaning "keeper of goats."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 138 Americans carry the last name Gaetjens. That puts it at #142,049 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,483,727 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gaetjens 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
138
1 in 2,483,727
Census rank
#142,049
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
120
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 120 bearers of the surname Gaetjens in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 142049th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaetjens, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.7%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Hispanic (12.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gaetjens
The surname Gaetjens has its origins in Germany, with records showing it was first used in the early 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Low German personal name "Gaede" or "Gede", which itself is a shortened form of the Germanic name "Gebhard". This name means "brave as a bear" or "brave bear".
The earliest recorded spelling of the name appears to be "Gaedtgens" in 1535, found in church records from the town of Elmshorn in the state of Schleswig-Holstein, northern Germany. Other early variants include "Gaetgens" and "Gaetjens". These spellings indicate the name likely originated in the Low German-speaking regions of northern Germany.
By the late 16th century, the surname had spread to other parts of Germany. In 1587, records show a Johannes Gaetjens living in the town of Rendsburg, also in Schleswig-Holstein. A few decades later in 1619, a Henricus Gaetjens is recorded residing in the city of Hamburg.
One of the earliest known bearers of this surname was Joachim Gaetjens, born around 1570 in the village of Lohe near Elmshorn. He worked as a farmer and is mentioned in tax records from 1603. Another early Gaetjens was Barthold Gaetjens, a merchant from Hamburg born in 1612 who traded goods along the River Elbe.
In the 18th century, the name appears in records from the Kingdom of Prussia. Carl Gottlieb Gaetjens was a Prussian soldier born in 1734 who fought in the Seven Years' War against Austrian and Russian forces. Later, in 1803, Johann Friedrich Gaetjens was born in Berlin and became a respected Lutheran theologian.
As the 19th century progressed, the surname spread further across Germany and into neighboring regions. Notable people included the German artist Wilhelm Gaetjens (1818-1888) who was born in Kiel and painted landscapes depicting northern German scenery. Additionally, Hermann Gaetjens (1864-1923) was a German industrialist from Hamburg who helped establish factories producing agricultural machinery.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gaetjens
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaetjens, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.7%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Hispanic (12.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Gaetjens 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 Gaetjens surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White61.7% · 74
- Black or African American16.7% · 20
- Hispanic or Latino12.5% · 15
- Two or more races6.7% · 8
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.7% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gaetjens
Gaetjens 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
#146,201
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 113
+3 bearers (+2.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,444 places
2020
#142,049
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 120
+7 bearers (+6.2%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 4,152 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #139,757 | 110 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #146,201 | 113 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.7%) | Down 6,444 places |
| 2020 | #142,049 | 120 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.2%) | Up 4,152 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 Gaetjens 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 | #146,201 | #142,049 | 2.8% |
| Count | 113 | 120 | 6.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | 0.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gaetjens bearers went from 113 to 120 (+6.2% change). The surname moved up 4,152 positions in the national ranking, going from #146,201 to #142,049.
FAQ
Gaetjens surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gaetjens?
Name Census estimates that about 138 living Americans carry the surname Gaetjens. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,483,727 residents.
How common is Gaetjens?
Gaetjens ranks #142,049 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 120 people with the surname Gaetjens. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (138), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Gaetjens.
Has Gaetjens become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gaetjens went from 113 recorded bearers to 120. That is an increase of 7 (+6.2%). In the national ranking it rose from #146,201 to #142,049.
What does the Census say about the background of Gaetjens?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaetjens, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.7%. The next largest groups are Black (16.7%) and Hispanic (12.5%). 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 Gaetjens in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.7% (74 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gaetjens appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (61.7%), Black (16.7%), Hispanic (12.5%). 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 Gaetjens (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 Gaetjens mean?
A surname of German origin meaning "keeper of goats." 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 Gaetjens (0.04 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 are called Gaetjens?
Find out how many people are called Gaetjens on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.