Find out how popular the last name Gago is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Gago.

Gago, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Gago surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gago in America

Gago is the 33941st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gago surname appeared 670 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Gago.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gago to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Gago

The surname Gago originated in Spain, specifically in the regions of Galicia and Asturias, during the medieval period. It is believed to derive from the Latin word "gagus," which means "stammerer" or "stutterer." This suggests that the name may have initially been a descriptive nickname given to an individual who had a speech impediment or difficulty speaking clearly.

Historically, the name Gago can be traced back to the 13th century, as evidenced by its appearance in various medieval records and documents. One notable reference is the Libro de las Behetrías de Castilla, a 14th-century manuscript that listed the names of landowners and their properties. In this manuscript, several individuals with the surname Gago were mentioned, indicating their presence in the region at that time.

The earliest recorded instances of the surname Gago include Juan Gago, a nobleman from Galicia who lived in the late 13th century, and Ruy Gago, a knight who participated in the Reconquista (the Christian reconquest of the Iberian Peninsula from the Moors) during the 14th century.

The name Gago was also associated with several place names in Spain, such as Gago de Salamanca, a small town in the province of Salamanca, and Gagos de Catalañazor, a municipality in the province of Soria. These place names likely derived from individuals bearing the Gago surname who settled in or owned land in those areas.

One notable figure with the surname Gago was Antonio Gago da Silva (1572-1639), a Portuguese Jesuit missionary and linguist who worked in Japan and made significant contributions to the study of the Japanese language. Another prominent individual was Juan Gago de Vadillo (c. 1505-1568), a Spanish conquistador who participated in the conquest of Peru and served as the first governor of the city of Arequipa.

Other individuals with the Gago surname include Pedro Gago (c. 1550-1629), a Spanish composer and organist known for his works in the Renaissance style, and Bartolomé Gago (c. 1560-1627), a Spanish painter active during the Baroque period, known for his religious and portrait works.

While the surname Gago has its roots in Spain, it has since spread to various parts of the world, including Portugal, Latin America, and other regions with Spanish and Portuguese influence, as a result of migration and colonization.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gago

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Gago.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Gago was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Gago has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Gago was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Gago, please contact us.

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!