2000
#3,661
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,913
First available Census row
Per 100,000 3.30
Rare Last name
Goad
An English occupational surname referring to a goatherd or someone who herds goats.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 9,479 Americans carry the last name Goad. That puts it at #4,153 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.77 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 36,159 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goad 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 Goad with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
9.5K
1 in 36,159
Census rank
#4,153
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
8.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 8,266 bearers of the surname Goad in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.77 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4153rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goad, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goad
The surname GOAD is believed to have originated in England, deriving from an Old English word 'gad' meaning a goad or stick used for driving cattle. This occupational surname was likely first adopted by someone who worked as a cattle herder or drover.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the GOAD surname dates back to the 13th century in Middlesex, England. In the Hundred Rolls of 1273, a record of landowners, there is mention of a Walter le Gad. This early spelling variation highlights the name's origins.
During the medieval period, the GOAD name appeared in various records across England. In the Subsidy Rolls of Sussex from 1296, there is a reference to a John Gode. This spelling variation likely arose due to scribes recording the name phonetically.
The GOAD surname may also have ties to certain place names in England. For instance, the village of Godalming in Surrey is believed to have derived its name from an Old English phrase meaning 'the homestead where goad games were played'.
Notable historical figures bearing the GOAD surname include John Goad (c. 1616-1689), an English clergyman and author who served as the Provost of King's College, Cambridge. Another prominent individual was Thomas Goad (1576-1638), an English theologian and preacher who became the Head of Convocation for the Church of England.
In the 16th century, the GOAD surname can be found in parish records from various counties in England, such as Norfolk, Suffolk, and Oxfordshire. For example, in 1564, the baptism of Johanne Goad was recorded in Bungay, Suffolk.
During the 17th century, the GOAD name continued to appear in various English records. One notable figure from this era was Sir Roger Goad (1635-1691), an English politician who served as a Member of Parliament for Yarmouth.
As the GOAD surname spread across England, it also found its way into other parts of the British Isles. In Scotland, records show instances of the name appearing in the 18th century, such as the birth of John Goad in Ayrshire in 1748.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goad
Among Census respondents with the surname Goad, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Goad 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 Goad surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.3% · 7,463
- Two or more races3.7% · 307
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 242
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.9% · 156
- Black or African American0.8% · 65
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 33
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goad
Goad 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
#3,920
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 9,062
+149 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 3.07
Rank movement Down 259 places
2020
#4,153
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 8,266
-796 bearers (-8.8%)
Per 100,000 2.77
Rank movement Down 233 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #3,661 | 8,913 | 3.30 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #3,920 | 9,062 | 3.07 | +149 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 259 places |
| 2020 | #4,153 | 8,266 | 2.77 | -796 bearers (-8.8%) | Down 233 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 Goad 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 | #3,920 | #4,153 | -5.9% |
| Count | 9,062 | 8,266 | -8.8% |
| Per 100K | 3.07 | 2.77 | -9.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goad bearers went from 9,062 to 8,266 (-8.8% change). The surname moved down 233 positions in the national ranking, going from #3,920 to #4,153.
FAQ
Goad surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goad?
Name Census estimates that about 9,479 living Americans carry the surname Goad. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 36,159 residents.
How common is Goad?
Goad ranks #4,153 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.77 per 100,000 residents, which is about 3 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 8,266 people with the surname Goad. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (9,479), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.77 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.77 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 3 of them to have the surname Goad.
Has Goad become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goad went from 9,062 recorded bearers to 8,266. That is a decrease of 796 (-8.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #3,920 to #4,153.
What does the Census say about the background of Goad?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goad, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Goad in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.3% (7,463 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goad appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.3%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (2.9%). 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 Goad (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 Goad mean?
An English occupational surname referring to a goatherd or someone who herds goats. 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 Goad (2.77 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 common is the surname Goad?
See how many people have the last name Goad on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.