2000
#85,297
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 204
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.08
Very Rare Last name
Gallashaw
A locational surname originating from a place name in England.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 271 Americans carry the last name Gallashaw. That puts it at #85,336 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,264,776 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gallashaw 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
271
1 in 1,264,776
Census rank
#85,336
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
236
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 236 bearers of the surname Gallashaw in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 85336th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gallashaw, the largest self-reported group is Black at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gallashaw
The surname GALLASHAW has its origins in the Scottish Borders region, tracing back to the 12th century. It is believed to derive from the Old English words "gal" meaning "wild" and "shaw" meaning "a small wood or grove," suggesting the name may have referred to someone who lived near a wild, overgrown woodland.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name appears in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, a historical document containing the names of Scottish landowners and nobles who swore allegiance to King Edward I of England. An entry lists a "William de Galeshawe" from the village of Galashiels, providing evidence of the name's Scottish roots and early spelling variations.
In the 16th century, the GALLASHAW name was found in the records of the Burgh of Peebles, a historic town in the Scottish Borders region. A notable bearer from this period was Robert GALLASHAW, a merchant and burgess of Peebles in the mid-1500s.
The name GALLASHAW also has a connection to the ancient Parish of Ancrum in Roxburghshire, where a family of that name held lands and estates in the 17th and 18th centuries. One prominent figure was John GALLASHAW (1650-1720), a landowner and local magistrate in Ancrum.
Moving into the 19th century, the GALLASHAW name gained recognition through individuals like James GALLASHAW (1805-1879), a Scottish artist known for his landscape paintings, and William GALLASHAW (1830-1902), a renowned architect who designed several churches and public buildings in Edinburgh.
Another noteworthy bearer of the GALLASHAW surname was Margaret GALLASHAW (1865-1952), a pioneering woman in the field of education. She served as the headmistress of St. Leonard's School in St Andrews, Scotland, and was a strong advocate for women's education and suffrage.
Throughout its history, the GALLASHAW name has maintained its Scottish heritage, with many bearers tracing their ancestry back to the Scottish Borders region and the ancient counties of Roxburghshire and Berwickshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gallashaw
Among Census respondents with the surname Gallashaw, the largest self-reported group is Black at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Gallashaw 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 Gallashaw surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Black or African American92.8% · 219
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 6
- Two or more races2.5% · 6
- White1.7% · 4
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gallashaw
Gallashaw 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
#79,598
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 239
+35 bearers (+17.2%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Up 5,699 places
2020
#85,336
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 236
-3 bearers (-1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.08
Rank movement Down 5,738 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #85,297 | 204 | 0.08 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #79,598 | 239 | 0.08 | +35 bearers (+17.2%) | Up 5,699 places |
| 2020 | #85,336 | 236 | 0.08 | -3 bearers (-1.3%) | Down 5,738 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 Gallashaw 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 | #79,598 | #85,336 | -7.2% |
| Count | 239 | 236 | -1.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.08 | 0.08 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gallashaw bearers went from 239 to 236 (-1.3% change). The surname moved down 5,738 positions in the national ranking, going from #79,598 to #85,336.
FAQ
Gallashaw surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gallashaw?
Name Census estimates that about 271 living Americans carry the surname Gallashaw. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,264,776 residents.
How common is Gallashaw?
Gallashaw ranks #85,336 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.08 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 236 people with the surname Gallashaw. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (271), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.08 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 Gallashaw.
Has Gallashaw become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gallashaw went from 239 recorded bearers to 236. That is a decrease of 3 (-1.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #79,598 to #85,336.
What does the Census say about the background of Gallashaw?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gallashaw, the largest self-reported group is Black at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Gallashaw in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (219 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gallashaw appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Black (92.8%), Hispanic (2.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Gallashaw (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 Gallashaw mean?
A locational surname originating from a place name in England. 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 Gallashaw (0.08 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 have the surname Gallashaw?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.