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

Gail, 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 Gail surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gail in America

Gail is the 31994th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gail surname appeared 721 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 Gail.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gail 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 Gail

The surname GAIL is believed to have originated from the Old French word "gal," which means "gay" or "joyful." It is thought to have been used as a nickname for someone with a cheerful or merry disposition.

The name GAIL is most commonly found in France, particularly in the northern regions. It first appeared in records during the 12th century, with some of the earliest documented examples being Gaillard de Lorris, a French poet born around 1160, and Robert le Gail, a Norman landowner mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086.

In the 13th century, the name GAIL was also found in England, likely introduced by Norman settlers after the conquest of 1066. One notable early bearer of the name was Sir Thomas Gail, a knight who fought alongside King Edward III in the Battle of Crécy in 1346.

During the Middle Ages, the name was often spelled in various ways, such as Gaille, Galle, or Gayle, reflecting regional dialects and scribal variations. The place name Gaillefontaine in Normandy, France, may have also contributed to the surname's origins.

In the 16th century, the French philosopher and essayist Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592) had a close friend named Étienne de La Boétie (1530-1563), whose mother's maiden name was Gail.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Jacob Gail (1565-1647), a German Protestant theologian and orientalist who was one of the first scholars to study the Arabic language in Europe.

In the 19th century, the French painter Édouard Gail (1819-1888) gained recognition for his landscapes and portraiture, while Thomas Franklin Gail (1856-1924) was an American businessman and philanthropist who founded the Gail Borden Public Library in Illinois.

Throughout history, the surname GAIL has maintained its association with cheerfulness and joy, reflecting its linguistic roots as a nickname for someone with a merry disposition.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gail

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

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 Gail 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 Gail 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 Gail was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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