2000
#12,367
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,304
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.85
Rare Last name
Gaillard
A French surname derived from the Old French word "gaillard," meaning "lively, high-spirited, or bold."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,588 Americans carry the last name Gaillard. That puts it at #13,010 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 132,440 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gaillard 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Gaillard with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 132,440
Census rank
#13,010
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,257 bearers of the surname Gaillard in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13010th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaillard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.6%. The next largest groups are White (42.6%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gaillard
The surname Gaillard has its origins in France, with the earliest records dating back to the 12th century. It is derived from the Old French word "gaillard," which means "gay" or "joyous." The name likely referred to someone with a lively or cheerful disposition.
In medieval times, the Gaillard family was prominent in the region of Normandy, France. Records show that a knight named Robert Gaillard participated in the Norman Conquest of England in 1066, fighting alongside William the Conqueror. His name appears in the famous Domesday Book, a survey of land ownership commissioned by William I in 1086.
The Gaillard surname can be traced back to various places in Normandy, such as the village of Gaillard in the department of Calvados. Other early spellings of the name include Gaillart, Gaillart, and Gailliard.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the Gaillard surname was Guillaume Gaillard, a French poet and composer who lived in the 13th century. He was known for his contributions to the courtly love tradition and his works, such as the Roman de la Rose.
Another notable figure was Jean Gaillard, a French architect and engineer who lived from 1675 to 1737. He is best known for his design of the Château de Versailles, where he served as the Chief Architect under King Louis XIV.
In the 19th century, the Gaillard family produced several notable figures, including Auguste Gaillard (1817-1878), a French historian and archaeologist who specialized in the study of ancient Greek and Roman civilizations. His works include "Recherches sur les Monnaies Grecques" and "Histoire de la Rivière de Gênes."
Pierre Gaillard (1808-1889) was a French painter and lithographer known for his landscape paintings and illustrations of rural life in France. His works were exhibited at the Paris Salon and are now part of various museum collections.
In the 20th century, Jean Gaillard (1904-1999) was a renowned French architect and urban planner. He was instrumental in the reconstruction and modernization of several cities in France after World War II, including Le Havre and Boulogne-sur-Mer.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gaillard
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaillard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.6%. The next largest groups are White (42.6%) and Hispanic (4.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Gaillard 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 Gaillard surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American47.6% · 1,075
- White42.6% · 962
- Hispanic or Latino4.5% · 101
- Two or more races4.4% · 100
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 16
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gaillard
Gaillard 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
#12,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,566
+262 bearers (+11.4%)
Per 100,000 0.87
Rank movement Up 227 places
2020
#13,010
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,257
-309 bearers (-12.0%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Down 870 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,367 | 2,304 | 0.85 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,140 | 2,566 | 0.87 | +262 bearers (+11.4%) | Up 227 places |
| 2020 | #13,010 | 2,257 | 0.76 | -309 bearers (-12.0%) | Down 870 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 Gaillard 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 | #12,140 | #13,010 | -7.2% |
| Count | 2,566 | 2,257 | -12.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.87 | 0.76 | -13.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gaillard bearers went from 2,566 to 2,257 (-12.0% change). The surname moved down 870 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,140 to #13,010.
FAQ
Gaillard surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gaillard?
Name Census estimates that about 2,588 living Americans carry the surname Gaillard. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 132,440 residents.
How common is Gaillard?
Gaillard ranks #13,010 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,257 people with the surname Gaillard. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,588), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Gaillard.
Has Gaillard become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gaillard went from 2,566 recorded bearers to 2,257. That is a decrease of 309 (-12.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #12,140 to #13,010.
What does the Census say about the background of Gaillard?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gaillard, the largest self-reported group is Black at 47.6%. The next largest groups are White (42.6%) and Hispanic (4.5%). 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?
Black is the largest self-reported group for the surname Gaillard in the 2020 Census, accounting for 47.6% (1,075 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gaillard appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (47.6%), White (42.6%), Hispanic (4.5%). 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 Gaillard (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 Gaillard mean?
A French surname derived from the Old French word "gaillard," meaning "lively, high-spirited, or bold." 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 Gaillard (0.76 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 Gaillard?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.