2000
#141,788
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Goodhall
An English surname derived from a place name signifying a hall of good reputation or status.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 131 Americans carry the last name Goodhall. That puts it at #146,495 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,616,445 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goodhall 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 Goodhall with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
131
1 in 2,616,445
Census rank
#146,495
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
114
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 114 bearers of the surname Goodhall in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 146495th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodhall, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.3%. The next largest groups are Black (33.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goodhall
The surname Goodhall is of English origin, with roots tracing back to the 13th century. It is believed to have originated from a combination of the Old English words "god" meaning good or virtuous, and "hall" referring to a large dwelling or manor house. This suggests that the name may have initially been given as a descriptive surname to someone who resided in a prosperous or well-regarded manor or hall.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundred Rolls of Cambridgeshire, dating back to 1273, which mentions a John de Godehale. This provides evidence of the name's existence during the Middle Ages and its potential association with a specific location or place.
The Goodhall surname has also been linked to various place names in England, such as Goodhall in Hertfordshire and Goodall in Lancashire. These place names may have influenced the spelling variations of the surname over time, including Goodall, Goodalle, and Goodhale.
Notable individuals bearing the Goodhall surname throughout history include Sir Henry Goodhall (c. 1480-1545), a prominent English merchant and diplomat during the reign of Henry VIII. Another figure was John Goodhall (1592-1664), an English clergyman and author who served as the Vicar of Stanwell in Middlesex.
In the literary realm, Thomas Goodhall (1633-1691) was an English poet and playwright known for his work "The Dividing of Christianity, or An Apology for the North-Men." Bridget Goodhall (1677-1749) was a notable English midwife who practiced in London and authored a treatise on midwifery.
Moving into the 18th century, William Goodhall (1763-1833) was a British naval officer who served in the Royal Navy during the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars, achieving the rank of Admiral.
While this surname has a long and diverse history, it is important to note that these examples are drawn from historical records and may not reflect the most up-to-date information on individuals bearing the Goodhall name in modern times.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goodhall
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodhall, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.3%. The next largest groups are Black (33.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Goodhall 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 Goodhall surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White62.3% · 71
- Black or African American33.3% · 38
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 3
- Two or more races1.8% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goodhall
Goodhall 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+7 bearers (+6.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,353 places
2020
#146,495
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-1 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,354 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #141,788 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +7 bearers (+6.5%) | Down 2,353 places |
| 2020 | #146,495 | 114 | 0.04 | -1 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 2,354 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 Goodhall 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 | #144,141 | #146,495 | -1.6% |
| Count | 115 | 114 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goodhall bearers went from 115 to 114 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 2,354 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #146,495.
FAQ
Goodhall surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goodhall?
Name Census estimates that about 131 living Americans carry the surname Goodhall. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,616,445 residents.
How common is Goodhall?
Goodhall ranks #146,495 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 114 people with the surname Goodhall. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (131), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Goodhall.
Has Goodhall become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goodhall went from 115 recorded bearers to 114. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #146,495.
What does the Census say about the background of Goodhall?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodhall, the largest self-reported group is White at 62.3%. The next largest groups are Black (33.3%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Goodhall in the 2020 Census, accounting for 62.3% (71 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goodhall appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (62.3%), Black (33.3%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Goodhall (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 Goodhall mean?
An English surname derived from a place name signifying a hall of good reputation or status. 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 Goodhall (0.04 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 surname Goodhall?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.