2000
#13,386
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,087
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.77
Rare Last name
Gerardo
Of Germanic origin, derived from a given name meaning "brave spearman" or "hardy spear."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,172 Americans carry the last name Gerardo. That puts it at #10,984 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.93 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 108,056 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gerardo 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
3.2K
1 in 108,056
Census rank
#10,984
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,766 bearers of the surname Gerardo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.93 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10984th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gerardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.7%. The next largest groups are White (13.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gerardo
The surname Gerardo originated in Italy during the medieval period. It is derived from the Germanic personal name Gerard, which means "strong with a spear." The earliest known spelling variations included Gerardi, Gerardis, and Gherardi.
The name Gerardo is believed to have first appeared in historical records in the late 12th century, mentioned in several Italian manuscripts from that era. One notable example is a document from the city of Lucca, dated 1196, which refers to a nobleman named Gerardo di Pisa.
In the 13th century, the Gerardo surname began to spread across various regions of Italy, including Tuscany, Lombardy, and Emilia-Romagna. It was particularly prevalent in the cities of Florence, Milan, and Bologna.
During the Renaissance period, several individuals bearing the surname Gerardo achieved prominence. One such figure was Gerardo di Jacopo Cioni, a Florentine painter who lived from 1336 to 1390 and is known for his works in the Basilica di Santa Croce in Florence.
Another notable figure was Gerardo Landriani, an Italian cardinal who was born in Milan in 1512 and served as the Bishop of Como from 1562 until his death in 1578.
In the 17th century, the Gerardo surname became associated with various place names in Italy, such as Gerardo di San Severino, a town in Calabria, and Gerardo di Cammarata, a municipality in the province of Agrigento, Sicily.
Among the more famous individuals with the surname Gerardo in later centuries was Gerardo Dottori, an Italian architect and engineer who lived from 1831 to 1913. He was responsible for designing several notable buildings in Rome, including the Palazzo delle Esposizioni.
Another prominent figure was Gerardo Gaudenzio, an Italian writer and journalist born in 1872 in Asti, Piedmont. He is best known for his novels and short stories depicting life in the Piedmont region during the late 19th and early 20th centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gerardo
Among Census respondents with the surname Gerardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.7%. The next largest groups are White (13.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Gerardo 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 Gerardo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino78.7% · 2,177
- White13.2% · 364
- Asian and Pacific Islander6.3% · 174
- Two or more races1.3% · 35
- Black or African American0.5% · 14
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gerardo
Gerardo 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
#12,227
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,546
+459 bearers (+22.0%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Up 1,159 places
2020
#10,984
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,766
+220 bearers (+8.6%)
Per 100,000 0.93
Rank movement Up 1,243 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,386 | 2,087 | 0.77 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #12,227 | 2,546 | 0.86 | +459 bearers (+22.0%) | Up 1,159 places |
| 2020 | #10,984 | 2,766 | 0.93 | +220 bearers (+8.6%) | Up 1,243 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 Gerardo 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 | #12,227 | #10,984 | 10.2% |
| Count | 2,546 | 2,766 | 8.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.86 | 0.93 | 7.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gerardo bearers went from 2,546 to 2,766 (+8.6% change). The surname moved up 1,243 positions in the national ranking, going from #12,227 to #10,984.
FAQ
Gerardo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gerardo?
Name Census estimates that about 3,172 living Americans carry the surname Gerardo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 108,056 residents.
How common is Gerardo?
Gerardo ranks #10,984 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.93 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 2,766 people with the surname Gerardo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,172), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.93 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.93 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 Gerardo.
Has Gerardo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gerardo went from 2,546 recorded bearers to 2,766. That is an increase of 220 (+8.6%). In the national ranking it rose from #12,227 to #10,984.
What does the Census say about the background of Gerardo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gerardo, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 78.7%. The next largest groups are White (13.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Gerardo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 78.7% (2,177 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gerardo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (78.7%), White (13.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (6.3%). 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 Gerardo (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 Gerardo mean?
Of Germanic origin, derived from a given name meaning "brave spearman" or "hardy spear." 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 Gerardo (0.93 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 Americans have the surname Gerardo?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.