2000
#4,862
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,629
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.46
Rare Last name
Giddens
Derived from the Old English personal name "Gydda" or from a place name meaning "Gydda's valley."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,231 Americans carry the last name Giddens. That puts it at #5,335 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.11 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 47,401 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Giddens 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 Giddens with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.2K
1 in 47,401
Census rank
#5,335
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,306 bearers of the surname Giddens in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.11 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5335th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Giddens, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.1%. The next largest groups are Black (23.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Giddens
The surname Giddens originated in England and can be traced back to the early medieval period. It is derived from the Old English personal name Gida, a diminutive form of the name Gida or Gida-helm. The name Gida is thought to have evolved from the Old English word "gid" or "gyd," meaning "god" or "good."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Giddens can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, which mentions a landowner named Gida in Leicestershire. The name Giddens is believed to have evolved from the Old English patronymic form "Gidessunu," meaning "son of Gida."
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name Giddens appeared in various records and documents with different spellings, such as Giddings, Giddens, and Giddens. These variations reflect the regional dialects and scribal preferences of the time.
In the 13th century, a notable figure named Walter Giddens was recorded as a landowner in Worcestershire. During the 14th century, a John Giddens was listed as a taxpayer in the Lay Subsidy Rolls of Warwickshire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Giddens in literature can be found in the works of Geoffrey Chaucer, the renowned 14th-century English poet and author. In his literary masterpiece, The Canterbury Tales, Chaucer mentions a character named "Giddens the Reeve," suggesting that the name was well-established in medieval England.
In the 16th century, a Thomas Giddens was born in Stratford-upon-Avon in 1567, becoming a prominent figure in the local community. Another notable individual from this period was William Giddens, born in 1586 in Gloucestershire, who later became a respected scholar and author.
During the 17th century, the name Giddens gained further recognition with individuals such as John Giddens (1615-1690), a prominent clergyman and author from Somerset, and Thomas Giddens (1638-1712), a successful merchant and landowner from Kent.
In the 18th century, a notable figure named Robert Giddens (1716-1793) made a significant contribution to the field of mathematics and astronomy. He was born in Oxfordshire and later became a fellow of the Royal Society.
Throughout history, the surname Giddens has been associated with various place names and locations in England, such as Giddens Green in Warwickshire, Giddens Hill in Oxfordshire, and Giddens Farm in Gloucestershire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Giddens
Among Census respondents with the surname Giddens, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.1%. The next largest groups are Black (23.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Giddens 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 Giddens surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White67.1% · 4,233
- Black or African American23.2% · 1,465
- Two or more races4.4% · 277
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 258
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 40
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Giddens
Giddens 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
#4,995
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,034
+405 bearers (+6.1%)
Per 100,000 2.38
Rank movement Down 133 places
2020
#5,335
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,306
-728 bearers (-10.3%)
Per 100,000 2.11
Rank movement Down 340 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,862 | 6,629 | 2.46 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,995 | 7,034 | 2.38 | +405 bearers (+6.1%) | Down 133 places |
| 2020 | #5,335 | 6,306 | 2.11 | -728 bearers (-10.3%) | Down 340 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 Giddens 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 | #4,995 | #5,335 | -6.8% |
| Count | 7,034 | 6,306 | -10.3% |
| Per 100K | 2.38 | 2.11 | -11.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Giddens bearers went from 7,034 to 6,306 (-10.3% change). The surname moved down 340 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,995 to #5,335.
FAQ
Giddens surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Giddens?
Name Census estimates that about 7,231 living Americans carry the surname Giddens. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 47,401 residents.
How common is Giddens?
Giddens ranks #5,335 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.11 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,306 people with the surname Giddens. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,231), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.11 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.11 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Giddens.
Has Giddens become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Giddens went from 7,034 recorded bearers to 6,306. That is a decrease of 728 (-10.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,995 to #5,335.
What does the Census say about the background of Giddens?
Among Census respondents with the surname Giddens, the largest self-reported group is White at 67.1%. The next largest groups are Black (23.2%) and Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Giddens in the 2020 Census, accounting for 67.1% (4,233 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Giddens appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (67.1%), Black (23.2%), Two or More Races (4.4%). 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 Giddens (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 Giddens mean?
Derived from the Old English personal name "Gydda" or from a place name meaning "Gydda's valley." 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 Giddens (2.11 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 Giddens?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.