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

Gitthens, 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 Gitthens surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gitthens in America

Gitthens is the 134712th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gitthens surname appeared 125 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Gitthens.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gitthens 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 Gitthens

The surname Gitthens is believed to have originated in the English county of Yorkshire during the medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old English words "gyt" meaning a channel or small stream, and "thwaite" meaning a clearing or meadow. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a meadow with a small stream running through it.

One of the earliest recorded instances of this surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1195, where a person named Robertus de Gytthwayt is mentioned. This spelling variation highlights the name's evolution over time.

In the 13th century, the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 include a reference to a William de Gythwayte, residing in the village of Gisburn in the West Riding of Yorkshire. This area was known for its fertile meadows and numerous small streams, lending credence to the proposed origins of the name.

The Gitthens surname appears to have been concentrated in the northern counties of England, particularly Yorkshire and Lancashire, during the medieval and early modern periods. One notable bearer of this name was John Gitthens, a yeoman farmer from Barnoldswick, Lancashire, who was recorded in the Lancashire Wills of 1548.

In the 17th century, the Gitthens family had established themselves in the village of Rimington, Yorkshire. The parish records from this time mention a Thomas Gitthens, born in 1621, and his son William Gitthens, born in 1654.

As the name spread across England, variations in spelling became more common. In the 18th century, the Gitthens surname was recorded as Gittins, Gittings, and Gyttins in different regions of the country.

One notable figure bearing this surname was John Gittins (1691-1767), a prominent Baptist minister and author from Wiltshire. Another was William Gittins (1784-1863), a renowned engraver and printmaker from London.

While the Gitthens surname has its roots in the northern counties of England, it eventually spread to other parts of the British Isles and beyond, carried by migrants and settlers. Today, it can be found in various spellings across the English-speaking world.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gitthens

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

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 Gitthens 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 Gitthens 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 Gitthens was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!