2000
#95,567
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 177
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.07
Very Rare Last name
Goldwyn
A Jewish surname based on the German words "gold" and "win" meaning golden meadow or field.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 240 Americans carry the last name Goldwyn. That puts it at #93,963 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,428,143 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goldwyn 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
240
1 in 1,428,143
Census rank
#93,963
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
209
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 209 bearers of the surname Goldwyn in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 93963rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goldwyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Black (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goldwyn
The surname Goldwyn is of English origin, first appearing in records during the late 16th century. It is believed to have originated in the county of Yorkshire, where it was likely derived from a combination of the Old English words "golde" meaning "gold" and "wyn" meaning "friend" or "protector." This suggests that the name may have been given as a descriptive surname to someone who was regarded as a valuable friend or protector.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the parish records of St. Mary's Church in Beverley, Yorkshire, where a Thomas Goldwyn was listed as a resident in 1587. The name also appears in the Hearth Tax Rolls of 1673, which recorded households subject to a tax based on the number of hearths or fireplaces they had, indicating that families bearing the Goldwyn surname had established themselves as landowners or tenants by this time.
In the 17th century, the name Goldwyn began appearing in various legal documents and court records. A notable example is the case of John Goldwyn, who was mentioned in the Court of Star Chamber records in 1635 for his involvement in a dispute over land ownership. This suggests that the Goldwyn family had gained a certain degree of prominence and wealth by this period.
The Goldwyn surname was also found in the parish records of several villages in Yorkshire, including Hutton Rudby, where a Thomas Goldwyn was recorded as a landowner in 1692. This indicates that the name had spread across the county and was associated with both urban and rural communities.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Goldwyn was William Goldwyn, born in 1721 in the village of Easingwold, Yorkshire. He later became a successful merchant and landowner, and his descendants continued to use the Goldwyn surname for several generations.
Another notable figure was Samuel Goldwyn, born in 1882 in Warsaw, Poland, to a Jewish family whose original surname was Gelbfisz. He later changed his name to Goldwyn, possibly inspired by the English surname, and went on to become a successful film producer and co-founder of Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) studios in Hollywood.
Other individuals with the Goldwyn surname include:
1. John Goldwyn (1801-1879), a prominent industrialist and philanthropist from Leeds, Yorkshire.
2. Samuel L. Goldwyn Jr. (1919-2005), an American film producer and the son of the aforementioned Samuel Goldwyn.
3. Lili Goldwyn (born 1984), an American film producer and author, descended from the Goldwyn family.
4. Toby Goldwyn (born 1975), a British actor and filmmaker.
5. Thomas Goldwyn (1687-1758), a merchant and landowner from Northallerton, Yorkshire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goldwyn
Among Census respondents with the surname Goldwyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Black (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Goldwyn 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 Goldwyn surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 191
- Hispanic or Latino6.2% · 13
- Black or African American1.0% · 2
- Two or more races1.0% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goldwyn
Goldwyn 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
#95,955
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 190
+13 bearers (+7.3%)
Per 100,000 0.06
Rank movement Down 388 places
2020
#93,963
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 209
+19 bearers (+10.0%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 1,992 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #95,567 | 177 | 0.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #95,955 | 190 | 0.06 | +13 bearers (+7.3%) | Down 388 places |
| 2020 | #93,963 | 209 | 0.07 | +19 bearers (+10.0%) | Up 1,992 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 Goldwyn 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 | #95,955 | #93,963 | 2.1% |
| Count | 190 | 209 | 10.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.06 | 0.07 | 16.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goldwyn bearers went from 190 to 209 (+10.0% change). The surname moved up 1,992 positions in the national ranking, going from #95,955 to #93,963.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Goldwyn
FAQ
Goldwyn surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goldwyn?
Name Census estimates that about 240 living Americans carry the surname Goldwyn. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,428,143 residents.
How common is Goldwyn?
Goldwyn ranks #93,963 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.07 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 209 people with the surname Goldwyn. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (240), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.07 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 Goldwyn.
Has Goldwyn become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goldwyn went from 190 recorded bearers to 209. That is an increase of 19 (+10.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #95,955 to #93,963.
What does the Census say about the background of Goldwyn?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goldwyn, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Black (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 Goldwyn in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (191 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goldwyn appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Hispanic (6.2%), Black (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 Goldwyn (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 Goldwyn mean?
A Jewish surname based on the German words "gold" and "win" meaning golden meadow or field. 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 Goldwyn (0.07 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 Goldwyn?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.