2000
#7,334
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,184
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.55
Rare Last name
Gonsalez
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Gonzalo or Gonsalo, derived from the personal name Gundisalvus.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,914 Americans carry the last name Gonsalez. That puts it at #7,489 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.43 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 69,751 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gonsalez 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
4.9K
1 in 69,751
Census rank
#7,489
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,285 bearers of the surname Gonsalez in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.43 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7489th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gonsalez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gonsalez
The surname Gonsalez is of Spanish origin, derived from the personal name Gonzalo. It has its roots in the Visigothic language, where the name Gundisalvus meant "battle protection." The earliest recorded instances of the name date back to the 9th century in the Kingdom of Asturias, located in the northwest region of modern-day Spain.
During the Middle Ages, the name Gonsalez was particularly prevalent in the regions of Galicia, Asturias, and León. It is believed that the name first appeared in written records in the 10th century, as documented in the Becerro de Celanova, an ancient manuscript from the Monastery of Celanova in Galicia.
One of the earliest known individuals with the surname Gonsalez was Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba (1453-1515), a prominent Spanish military leader during the Reconquista and the Italian Wars. He was known as "El Gran Capitán" (The Great Captain) for his strategic victories against the French.
Another notable figure was Gonzalo Jiménez de Quesada (c. 1495-1579), a Spanish explorer and conquistador who led the Spanish conquest of the Muisca people and founded the city of Santa Fe de Bogotá, the present-day capital of Colombia.
In the 16th century, the Gonsalez surname gained prominence in Mexico and other parts of the Spanish Empire. One example is Hernán González de Eslava (1534-1601), a Spanish-Mexican composer and choir director who is considered one of the earliest and most important composers of the Renaissance in the New World.
The name also appeared in literary works, such as in the Spanish epic poem "El Cantar de Mío Cid," where the character Álvar Fáñez de Minaya is referred to as "Álvar Fáñez Gonsalez."
Another notable figure is Tirso de Molina (1579-1648), a Spanish playwright and poet whose full name was Gabriel Téllez y Girón, but who wrote under the pseudonym Fray Gabriel Téllez or Tirso de Molina. He is considered one of the great dramatists of the Spanish Golden Age.
Throughout history, the surname Gonsalez has maintained its Spanish roots and has been widely dispersed across the Spanish-speaking world, including Latin America, due to the expansion of the Spanish Empire.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gonsalez
Among Census respondents with the surname Gonsalez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Gonsalez 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 Gonsalez surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- Hispanic or Latino95.3% · 4,084
- White3.5% · 150
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 15
- Black or African American0.3% · 12
- Two or more races0.2% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gonsalez
Gonsalez 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
#6,225
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,495
+1,311 bearers (+31.3%)
Per 100,000 1.86
Rank movement Up 1,109 places
2020
#7,489
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,285
-1,210 bearers (-22.0%)
Per 100,000 1.43
Rank movement Down 1,264 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,334 | 4,184 | 1.55 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,225 | 5,495 | 1.86 | +1,311 bearers (+31.3%) | Up 1,109 places |
| 2020 | #7,489 | 4,285 | 1.43 | -1,210 bearers (-22.0%) | Down 1,264 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 Gonsalez 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 | #6,225 | #7,489 | -20.3% |
| Count | 5,495 | 4,285 | -22.0% |
| Per 100K | 1.86 | 1.43 | -22.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gonsalez bearers went from 5,495 to 4,285 (-22.0% change). The surname moved down 1,264 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,225 to #7,489.
FAQ
Gonsalez surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gonsalez?
Name Census estimates that about 4,914 living Americans carry the surname Gonsalez. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 69,751 residents.
How common is Gonsalez?
Gonsalez ranks #7,489 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.43 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 4,285 people with the surname Gonsalez. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,914), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.43 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.43 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 Gonsalez.
Has Gonsalez become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gonsalez went from 5,495 recorded bearers to 4,285. That is a decrease of 1,210 (-22.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,225 to #7,489.
What does the Census say about the background of Gonsalez?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gonsalez, the largest self-reported group is Hispanic at 95.3%. The next largest groups are White (3.5%) and American Indian/Alaska Native (0.4%). 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?
Hispanic is the largest self-reported group for the surname Gonsalez in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.3% (4,084 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gonsalez appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are Hispanic (95.3%), White (3.5%), American Indian/Alaska Native (0.4%). 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 Gonsalez (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 Gonsalez mean?
A Spanish habitational surname referring to someone from a place called Gonzalo or Gonsalo, derived from the personal name Gundisalvus. 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 Gonsalez (1.43 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 Gonsalez?
If you just want to know how common the surname Gonsalez is, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.