2000
#147,095
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 103
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Gellerstedt
A German surname likely derived from a place name meaning "place of piles or stakes".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Gellerstedt. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gellerstedt 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
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Gellerstedt in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gellerstedt, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gellerstedt
The surname Gellerstedt is of Swedish origin and can be traced back to the 16th century. It is a locational name derived from the village of Gellersta in Östergötland, Sweden. The name Gellersta is believed to have originated from the Old Swedish words "gäll" meaning "loud" or "shrill" and "sta(d)" meaning "place" or "position".
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gellerstedt appears in a Swedish parish record from 1597, where a man named Nils Gellerstedt is mentioned. In the 17th century, the name was also found in military records, with a soldier named Erik Gellerstedt serving in the Swedish army during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648).
The Gellerstedt family has a long history of noble lineage in Sweden. In 1654, a member of the family named Johan Gellerstedt was ennobled and granted a coat of arms. His descendants went on to hold various positions of importance in Swedish society, including military officers, politicians, and diplomats.
One notable member of the Gellerstedt family was Carl Gustaf Gellerstedt (1733-1795), a Swedish naval officer and explorer. He led several expeditions to the Arctic regions and made significant contributions to the mapping and exploration of the northern coasts of Sweden and Norway.
Another prominent figure was Carl Vilhelm August Gellerstedt (1789-1857), a Swedish politician and statesman. He served as the Prime Minister of Sweden from 1838 to 1839 and played a crucial role in the formation of the Scandinavian Monetary Union in 1873.
In the 19th century, the name Gellerstedt was also found in other parts of Europe, such as Germany and Russia. One example is Gustav von Gellerstedt (1815-1895), a Russian-born Swedish military officer and engineer who played a significant role in the modernization of the Swedish army.
Other notable individuals with the surname Gellerstedt include Mauritz Gellerstedt (1718-1786), a Swedish botanist and entomologist, and Axel Gellerstedt (1781-1856), a Swedish judge and legal scholar who served as the President of the Göta Court of Appeal.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gellerstedt
Among Census respondents with the surname Gellerstedt, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gellerstedt 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 Gellerstedt surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.0% · 98
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
- Two or more races1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gellerstedt
Gellerstedt 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
#159,712
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-2 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 12,617 places
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 4,442 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #147,095 | 103 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #159,712 | 101 | 0.03 | -2 bearers (-1.9%) | Down 12,617 places |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Up 4,442 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 Gellerstedt 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 | #159,712 | #155,270 | 2.8% |
| Count | 101 | 101 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gellerstedt bearers went from 101 to 101 (+0.0% change). The surname moved up 4,442 positions in the national ranking, going from #159,712 to #155,270.
FAQ
Gellerstedt surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gellerstedt?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Gellerstedt. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Gellerstedt?
Gellerstedt ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 101 people with the surname Gellerstedt. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Gellerstedt.
Has Gellerstedt become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gellerstedt went from 101 recorded bearers to 101. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #159,712 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Gellerstedt?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gellerstedt, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.0%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%). 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 Gellerstedt in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.0% (98 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gellerstedt appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%), American Indian/Alaska Native (1.0%). 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 Gellerstedt (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 Gellerstedt mean?
A German surname likely derived from a place name meaning "place of piles or stakes". 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 Gellerstedt (0.03 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 last name Gellerstedt?
Find out how many people have the surname Gellerstedt on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.