2000
#10,248
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,885
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.07
Rare Last name
Goodyear
An occupational surname referring to a dealer or maker of leather or rubber goods.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,261 Americans carry the last name Goodyear. That puts it at #10,723 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.95 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 105,107 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Goodyear 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 Goodyear with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
3.3K
1 in 105,107
Census rank
#10,723
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,844 bearers of the surname Goodyear in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.95 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 10723rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodyear, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Goodyear
The surname Goodyear is of English origin, derived from the occupation of a maker or seller of goudis, which were a type of horses' leg armor made of leather. The name first appeared in the 13th century and is believed to have originated in the counties of Yorkshire and Lancashire.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, where it is spelled as "Godiar." In the 14th century, the name appeared in various forms, such as "Godyer," "Godyere," and "Goudyere."
The surname Goodyear is also closely associated with the village of Goodyear in Derbyshire, which was originally known as "Godeyere" in the Domesday Book of 1086. It is likely that some individuals bearing the surname may have taken their name from this place.
In the 16th century, the name gained prominence with the rise of the Goodyear family of Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk. One notable member was John Goodyear (c. 1520-1594), a wealthy merchant and landowner who served as the Member of Parliament for Bury St. Edmunds.
Another prominent figure was Stephen Goodyear (1638-1658), an English clergyman and author who published several religious works, including "The Divine Authority of the Scriptures Asserted" in 1653.
In the 18th century, Charles Goodyear (1800-1860), an American inventor and manufacturing engineer, became famous for his groundbreaking work on vulcanizing rubber. He is widely regarded as the inventor of the modern rubber industry.
Other notable individuals with the surname Goodyear include William Goodyear (1799-1866), an English architect known for designing the Town Hall in Birmingham, and Sir George Goodyear (1858-1923), a British industrialist and Member of Parliament for Middlesbrough.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Goodyear
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodyear, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Goodyear 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 Goodyear surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.1% · 2,562
- Two or more races4.1% · 117
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 78
- Black or African American1.9% · 55
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 10
Timeline
Historical Census data for Goodyear
Goodyear 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
#10,910
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,918
+33 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 0.99
Rank movement Down 662 places
2020
#10,723
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,844
-74 bearers (-2.5%)
Per 100,000 0.95
Rank movement Up 187 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #10,248 | 2,885 | 1.07 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #10,910 | 2,918 | 0.99 | +33 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 662 places |
| 2020 | #10,723 | 2,844 | 0.95 | -74 bearers (-2.5%) | Up 187 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 Goodyear 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 | #10,910 | #10,723 | 1.7% |
| Count | 2,918 | 2,844 | -2.5% |
| Per 100K | 0.99 | 0.95 | -3.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Goodyear bearers went from 2,918 to 2,844 (-2.5% change). The surname moved up 187 positions in the national ranking, going from #10,910 to #10,723.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Goodyear
FAQ
Goodyear surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Goodyear?
Name Census estimates that about 3,261 living Americans carry the surname Goodyear. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 105,107 residents.
How common is Goodyear?
Goodyear ranks #10,723 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.95 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 2,844 people with the surname Goodyear. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,261), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.95 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.95 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 Goodyear.
Has Goodyear become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Goodyear went from 2,918 recorded bearers to 2,844. That is a decrease of 74 (-2.5%). In the national ranking it rose from #10,910 to #10,723.
What does the Census say about the background of Goodyear?
Among Census respondents with the surname Goodyear, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.1%) and Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Goodyear in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.1% (2,562 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Goodyear appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.1%), Two or More Races (4.1%), Hispanic (2.7%). 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 Goodyear (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 Goodyear mean?
An occupational surname referring to a dealer or maker of leather or rubber goods. 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 Goodyear (0.95 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 Goodyear?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.