2000
#11,410
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,533
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.94
Rare Last name
Garlock
An English occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold garlic or lived near a garlic field.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,842 Americans carry the last name Garlock. That puts it at #12,024 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.83 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 120,603 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garlock 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
2.8K
1 in 120,603
Census rank
#12,024
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.5K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,478 bearers of the surname Garlock in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.83 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12024th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garlock, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garlock
The surname Garlock has its origins in England, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old English words "gara" meaning "triangular piece of land" and "loc" meaning "enclosure," suggesting that the name was initially given to someone who resided in a triangular-shaped enclosure or plot of land.
The earliest recorded instances of the Garlock surname can be traced back to the 13th century, with various spellings such as Garlok, Garlok, and Garloke appearing in historical records. One notable reference is found in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire from 1273, which mentions a Robert Garlok.
In the 14th century, the name Garlock appeared in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire, where a John Garlok was mentioned in 1317. This indicates that the name had spread beyond its initial region of origin.
The Garlock surname may also be associated with specific place names, such as the village of Garlock in Derbyshire, England. This village was mentioned in the Domesday Book of 1086 under the name "Gareloc," further reinforcing the connection between the surname and its geographical roots.
One notable figure bearing the Garlock surname was John Garlock (c. 1590-1670), an English Puritan who emigrated to the Massachusetts Bay Colony in the 17th century. He was among the early settlers of Hampton, New Hampshire, and played a significant role in the development of the colony.
Another notable individual was William Garlock (1778-1851), an American pioneer and frontiersman who played a crucial role in the exploration and settlement of the American West. He was a renowned trapper, guide, and interpreter who worked with various expeditions, including those led by William Henry Ashley and Jedediah Smith.
In the realm of literature, Mary Garlock (1914-2010) was an American novelist and short story writer known for her works depicting life in the rural Midwest. Her novel "The Edge of Violence" published in 1959, received critical acclaim and brought her national recognition.
Silas Garlock (1833-1911) was a prominent American entrepreneur and inventor who founded the Garlock Packing Company in 1887. The company specialized in the manufacture of industrial gaskets and sealing products, and Garlock's innovations played a significant role in the development of modern sealing technology.
Lastly, James Garlock (1925-2018) was an American aerospace engineer who made significant contributions to the design and development of spacecraft and launch vehicles. He worked for NASA and played a crucial role in the Apollo program, contributing to the successful landing of the first humans on the Moon.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garlock
Among Census respondents with the surname Garlock, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Garlock 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 Garlock surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 2,237
- Two or more races4.4% · 109
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 81
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 27
- Black or African American0.8% · 20
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garlock
Garlock 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
#11,395
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,767
+234 bearers (+9.2%)
Per 100,000 0.94
Rank movement Up 15 places
2020
#12,024
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,478
-289 bearers (-10.4%)
Per 100,000 0.83
Rank movement Down 629 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #11,410 | 2,533 | 0.94 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,395 | 2,767 | 0.94 | +234 bearers (+9.2%) | Up 15 places |
| 2020 | #12,024 | 2,478 | 0.83 | -289 bearers (-10.4%) | Down 629 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 Garlock 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 | #11,395 | #12,024 | -5.5% |
| Count | 2,767 | 2,478 | -10.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.94 | 0.83 | -11.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garlock bearers went from 2,767 to 2,478 (-10.4% change). The surname moved down 629 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,395 to #12,024.
FAQ
Garlock surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garlock?
Name Census estimates that about 2,842 living Americans carry the surname Garlock. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 120,603 residents.
How common is Garlock?
Garlock ranks #12,024 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.83 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 2,478 people with the surname Garlock. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,842), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.83 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.83 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 Garlock.
Has Garlock become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garlock went from 2,767 recorded bearers to 2,478. That is a decrease of 289 (-10.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #11,395 to #12,024.
What does the Census say about the background of Garlock?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garlock, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.4%) and Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Garlock in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (2,237 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garlock appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (4.4%), Hispanic (3.3%). 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 Garlock (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 Garlock mean?
An English occupational surname referring to someone who made or sold garlic or lived near a garlic field. 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 Garlock (0.83 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 Garlock?
Want to know how many people have the last name Garlock? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.