Find out how popular the last name Goossens is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Goossens.

Goossens, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Goossens surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Goossens in America

Goossens is the 39419th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Goossens surname appeared 558 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Goossens.

We can also compare 2010 data for Goossens to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Goossens

The surname Goossens originates from the Low Countries, specifically the regions that are now modern-day Belgium and the Netherlands. It is believed to have emerged in the late medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century.

The name Goossens is a patronymic surname, meaning it was derived from the given name of an ancestor. In this case, it is likely a Dutch or Flemish diminutive form of the personal name Goos or Goossen, which itself is a variant of the Germanic name Gosewin or Goswin.

The root of the name Gosewin or Goswin is thought to be derived from the Germanic elements "gans" meaning "goose" and "win" meaning "friend" or "protector." Thus, the surname Goossens essentially means "son of Goos" or "son of the one with the nickname related to a goose."

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Goossens can be found in the Leiden Gaardeniers Register, a register of gardeners in Leiden, Netherlands, from the 16th century. The entry dated 1595 mentions a certain Pieter Goossens.

Another early example is found in the Grote Volksverhuizing, a record of mass migration from the Southern Netherlands to the Northern Netherlands in the late 16th and early 17th centuries. It lists a Joost Goossens from Antwerp, who settled in Amsterdam in 1597.

Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals bearing the surname Goossens. One of the earliest was Jan Goossens, a Flemish painter active in the 16th century, known for his religious works and portraits.

In the 18th century, there was Andries Goossens, a Dutch architect and sculptor who designed several notable buildings in The Hague and other Dutch cities.

Moving into the 19th century, we find Eugène Goossens, a Belgian violinist and composer born in 1867. He was a prominent figure in the musical life of London and conducted several important premieres of works by British composers.

In the 20th century, there was Sir Eugene Aynsley Goossens, an English conductor and composer born in 1893. He served as the conductor of the Cincinnati Symphony Orchestra and the Sydney Symphony Orchestra, among others.

Another notable figure was André Goossens, a Belgian organist and composer born in 1926. He is particularly renowned for his compositions for organ and his influential teaching at the Royal Conservatory of Music in Antwerp.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Goossens

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Goossens.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Goossens was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Goossens has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Goossens was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Goossens, please contact us.

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