2000
#4,688
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,909
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.56
Rare Last name
Gladden
An English surname derived from a place name or referring to someone who lived near a kite hill.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,805 Americans carry the last name Gladden. That puts it at #5,000 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,915 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gladden 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 Gladden with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.8K
1 in 43,915
Census rank
#5,000
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,806 bearers of the surname Gladden in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5000th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gladden, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.8%. The next largest groups are Black (33.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gladden
The surname Gladden is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "gladden," meaning "to gladden" or "to make happy." It first appeared in the historical records during the late 12th century.
The name is believed to have originated in the counties of Lancashire and Yorkshire, where it was commonly found among families residing in these regions. Some early documented references to the name include William le Glade, recorded in the Pipe Rolls of Lancashire in 1176, and Ode Gladden, listed in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire in 1195.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Gladden can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire from 1273, which mentions a person named Richard Gladden. Additionally, the Subsidy Rolls of Worcestershire in 1327 include a reference to a certain John Gladden.
During the medieval period, the name Gladden was often associated with occupations related to entertainment or bringing joy to others. For instance, some individuals bearing this name may have been jesters, minstrels, or performers who entertained nobility and commoners alike.
Notable individuals with the surname Gladden throughout history include William Gladden (1536-1618), an English clergyman and author who served as the rector of Awliscombe in Devon. Another prominent figure was Sir John Gladden (1680-1754), a British merchant and politician who served as the Lord Mayor of London in 1744.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Gladden is Samuel Gladden, who was born in Massachusetts in 1663. Later, in the 19th century, Washington Gladden (1836-1918) was a prominent American clergyman, author, and social reformer from Ohio.
Other notable individuals with the surname Gladden include British author Reginald Gladden (1880-1946), known for his works on English literature, and American baseball player Fred Gladden (1889-1942), who played for the Detroit Tigers and New York Yankees in the early 20th century.
The name Gladden has also been associated with various place names, such as Gladden Brook in Cheshire, England, and Gladden Meadows, a nature reserve in West Sussex, England. These place names may have been derived from or influenced by individuals bearing the surname Gladden who resided in or were associated with these locations.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gladden
Among Census respondents with the surname Gladden, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.8%. The next largest groups are Black (33.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gladden 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 Gladden surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White56.8% · 3,869
- Black or African American33.6% · 2,286
- Two or more races5.0% · 338
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 233
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 62
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gladden
Gladden 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
#4,846
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,271
+362 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 2.46
Rank movement Down 158 places
2020
#5,000
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,806
-465 bearers (-6.4%)
Per 100,000 2.28
Rank movement Down 154 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,688 | 6,909 | 2.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,846 | 7,271 | 2.46 | +362 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 158 places |
| 2020 | #5,000 | 6,806 | 2.28 | -465 bearers (-6.4%) | Down 154 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 Gladden 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 | #4,846 | #5,000 | -3.2% |
| Count | 7,271 | 6,806 | -6.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.46 | 2.28 | -7.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gladden bearers went from 7,271 to 6,806 (-6.4% change). The surname moved down 154 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,846 to #5,000.
FAQ
Gladden surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gladden?
Name Census estimates that about 7,805 living Americans carry the surname Gladden. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,915 residents.
How common is Gladden?
Gladden ranks #5,000 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.28 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 6,806 people with the surname Gladden. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,805), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.28 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 Gladden.
Has Gladden become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gladden went from 7,271 recorded bearers to 6,806. That is a decrease of 465 (-6.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,846 to #5,000.
What does the Census say about the background of Gladden?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gladden, the largest self-reported group is White at 56.8%. The next largest groups are Black (33.6%) and Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Gladden in the 2020 Census, accounting for 56.8% (3,869 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gladden appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (56.8%), Black (33.6%), Two or More Races (5.0%). 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 Gladden (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 Gladden mean?
An English surname derived from a place name or referring to someone who lived near a kite hill. 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 Gladden (2.28 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 are called Gladden?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Gladden, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.