2000
#10,670
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,752
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.02
Rare Last name
Goin
A French occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of a type of dagger or knife.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,956 Americans carry the last name Goin. That puts it at #11,641 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 115,952 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goin 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
3.0K
1 in 115,952
Census rank
#11,641
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,578 bearers of the surname Goin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 11641st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goin, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goin
The surname Goin has its origins in France, dating back to the 11th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old French word "goin," which referred to a person who was a jester or a fool. The name may also be connected to the French town of Goins, located in the Auvergne region.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Goin can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript compiled in 1086 by order of William the Conqueror. The entry mentions a landowner named Goinus, which is likely an early spelling variation of the surname.
During the Middle Ages, the name was relatively widespread in various parts of France, particularly in the northern and central regions. Several notable individuals bearing the Goin surname emerged during this period, including Jean Goin, a prominent merchant from Paris who lived in the 14th century.
In the 16th century, the name Goin gained prominence in the region of Normandy, where it was associated with a noble family. One notable member of this family was Pierre Goin, born in 1532, who served as a captain in the French army during the Wars of Religion.
As the centuries passed, the Goin surname spread beyond France's borders, with some bearers of the name migrating to other European countries and eventually to the Americas. One notable American with this surname was John Goin, born in Virginia in 1756, who served as a soldier in the Revolutionary War.
Another prominent figure was Sir Henry Goin, a British explorer and adventurer who lived in the late 18th century. He is credited with leading one of the first expeditions to map the interior regions of Australia, contributing significantly to the knowledge of the continent's geography.
In the 19th century, the Goin surname was well-represented in various artistic and literary circles. Notable individuals included the French poet and novelist Émile Goin (1823-1892) and the American painter William Goin (1836-1905), whose landscapes and portraits captured the beauty of the American West.
Variations and alternate spellings of the surname Goin have emerged over time, including Goins, Goyn, and Goyne, among others. These variations can often be traced back to regional linguistic differences or clerical errors in record-keeping.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goin
Among Census respondents with the surname Goin, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Goin 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 Goin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.3% · 2,174
- Black or African American5.5% · 141
- Two or more races4.9% · 126
- Hispanic or Latino4.2% · 107
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 14
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goin
Goin 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
#11,907
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,629
-123 bearers (-4.5%)
Per 100,000 0.89
Rank movement Down 1,237 places
2020
#11,641
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,578
-51 bearers (-1.9%)
Per 100,000 0.86
Rank movement Up 266 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,670 | 2,752 | 1.02 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #11,907 | 2,629 | 0.89 | -123 bearers (-4.5%) | Down 1,237 places |
| 2020 | #11,641 | 2,578 | 0.86 | -51 bearers (-1.9%) | Up 266 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 Goin 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 | #11,907 | #11,641 | 2.2% |
| Count | 2,629 | 2,578 | -1.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.89 | 0.86 | -3.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goin bearers went from 2,629 to 2,578 (-1.9% change). The surname moved up 266 positions in the national ranking, going from #11,907 to #11,641.
FAQ
Goin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goin?
Name Census estimates that about 2,956 living Americans carry the surname Goin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 115,952 residents.
How common is Goin?
Goin ranks #11,641 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.86 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,578 people with the surname Goin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,956), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.86 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.86 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Goin.
Has Goin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goin went from 2,629 recorded bearers to 2,578. That is a decrease of 51 (-1.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #11,907 to #11,641.
What does the Census say about the background of Goin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goin, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.3%. The next largest groups are Black (5.5%) and Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Goin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.3% (2,174 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.3%), Black (5.5%), Two or More Races (4.9%). 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 Goin (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 Goin mean?
A French occupational surname referring to a maker or seller of a type of dagger or knife. 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 Goin (0.86 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 have the last name Goin?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people have the surname Goin at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.