Find out how popular the last name Gift is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Gift.

Gift, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Gift surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gift in America

Gift is the 18523rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gift surname appeared 1,490 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Gift.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gift to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Gift

The surname Gift originated in England in the late 12th century, derived from the Old English word "gifan" meaning "to give". It likely referred to a person who was generous or gave gifts, or perhaps a town crier who announced gifts or proclaimed news.

In medieval times, Gift was found in various records across southern England, such as the Hundred Rolls of Oxford from 1279 which mentions a William le Gyfft. The Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296 also record a John Gyfte.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Walter Gifte, born around 1320 in Chelmsford, Essex. Older spellings of the name included Gyfte, Gyffte, and Gifft, as seen in records from Kent, Surrey, and Hampshire between 1400-1500.

The Domesday Book, compiled in 1086 after the Norman conquest, does not contain any direct references to the surname Gift. However, it does list several place names that may have influenced the name's development, such as Gifford in East Sussex and Giveldene in Kent.

Notable people with the surname Gift throughout history include Sir William Gift (c.1480-1549), a prominent merchant and Member of Parliament for Southwark. John Gift (1591-1659) was an English clergyman and author of several religious texts.

Elizabeth Gift (1630-1684) was one of the first female preachers among the Quakers in England. Thomas Gift (1720-1798) was a British naval officer who served during the American Revolutionary War. Charles Gift (1815-1892) was a successful banker and philanthropist in London.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gift

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Gift.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Gift was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Gift has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Gift was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Gift, please contact us.

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