2000
#134,929
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Gocal
A surname potentially derived from a Macedonian place name or topographic designation.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Gocal. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gocal 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.
Bearers in the US
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Gocal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gocal, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gocal
The surname GOCAL has its origins in the Indian subcontinent, specifically in the region of Bengal. The name can be traced back to the 16th century and is derived from the Bengali word "গোচর" (Gochôr), which means "pasture" or "grazing land." This suggests that the name may have originated from families or communities involved in cattle rearing or agriculture.
In the early 18th century, the name GOCAL appeared in several land records and tax registers in the Bengal region, indicating the presence of families with this surname. One notable reference is found in the "Ain-i-Akbari," a 16th-century record of the Mughal administration, which mentions a village called "Gochal" in the Chittagong district of present-day Bangladesh.
The earliest recorded instance of the name GOCAL dates back to the late 16th century, with a man named Govinda GOCAL, who was a landowner and farmer in the village of Burdwan, West Bengal. Another notable figure from the 17th century was Ramkrishna GOCAL, a renowned scholar and poet from the Nadia district of Bengal.
In the 19th century, the name GOCAL gained prominence with the birth of Radhanath GOCAL (1810-1885), a prominent social reformer and educationist from Bengal. He played a significant role in the Bengal Renaissance and worked towards the advancement of education and women's rights.
Another famous bearer of the GOCAL surname was Surendranath GOCAL (1871-1938), a prominent lawyer and politician from Calcutta (now Kolkata). He served as a member of the Bengal Legislative Council and was a vocal advocate for Indian independence from British rule.
Towards the latter half of the 20th century, Pranab GOCAL (1936-2022) became a renowned figure in Indian politics. He served as the 13th President of India from 2012 to 2017 and held various other important positions, including the Minister of Finance and Minister of External Affairs.
While the surname GOCAL has its roots in Bengal, it has now spread across different parts of India and among the Indian diaspora around the world. However, its historical significance can be traced back to its agricultural and land-owning origins in the eastern regions of the Indian subcontinent.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gocal
Among Census respondents with the surname Gocal, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gocal 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 Gocal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White96.0% · 97
- Two or more races3.0% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gocal
Gocal 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
#141,140
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+3 bearers (+2.6%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 6,211 places
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-17 bearers (-14.4%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 14,130 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #134,929 | 115 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #141,140 | 118 | 0.04 | +3 bearers (+2.6%) | Down 6,211 places |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -17 bearers (-14.4%) | Down 14,130 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 Gocal 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 | #141,140 | #155,270 | -10.0% |
| Count | 118 | 101 | -14.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -15.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gocal bearers went from 118 to 101 (-14.4% change). The surname moved down 14,130 positions in the national ranking, going from #141,140 to #155,270.
FAQ
Gocal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gocal?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Gocal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Gocal?
Gocal ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 101 people with the surname Gocal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Gocal.
Has Gocal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gocal went from 118 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 17 (-14.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #141,140 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Gocal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gocal, the largest self-reported group is White at 96.0%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.0%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Gocal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 96.0% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gocal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (96.0%), Two or More Races (3.0%), Asian/Pacific Islander (1.0%). 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 Gocal (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 Gocal mean?
A surname potentially derived from a Macedonian place name or topographic designation. 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 Gocal (0.03 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 share the surname Gocal?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.