2000
#5,456
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,867
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.17
Rare Last name
Gourley
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "filthy bog" in Gaelic.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,493 Americans carry the last name Gourley. That puts it at #5,872 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.89 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 52,788 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gourley 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 Gourley with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
6.5K
1 in 52,788
Census rank
#5,872
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,662 bearers of the surname Gourley in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.89 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5872nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gourley, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gourley
The surname Gourley originated in Scotland and is believed to have derived from the Gaelic word "gormhaillidh," which means "green" or "verdant." This name likely referred to someone who lived near a green or fertile area.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Gourley can be found in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a collection of acts of homage and fealty to King Edward I of England. The name is listed as "Gourlai" in this document.
In the 16th century, the Gourley family is known to have settled in the county of Ayrshire, Scotland. One notable member of the family during this time was John Gourley, who was born in 1567 and served as a minister in the town of Kilwinning.
The name Gourley has also been associated with various place names throughout Scotland, such as Gourley Burn, a stream in Dumfriesshire, and Gourley Hill, a location in Ayrshire.
Over the centuries, the surname has had various spellings, including Gourley, Gourlay, Gourlaye, and Gourlie. These variations were likely due to regional differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions.
In the 18th century, a notable figure with the surname Gourley was Robert Gourley, a Scottish poet who was born in 1778. He published several works, including "The Poetic Mirror" and "The Moral Parnassian."
Another prominent individual with the name was William Gourley, a Scottish mathematician and astronomer born in 1776. He made significant contributions to the field of astronomy and wrote several books on the subject, including "A Treatise on the Mathematical Theory of the Motion of Projectiles."
In the 19th century, John Gourley, born in 1813, was a Scottish inventor and engineer who is credited with developing an early version of the steam plow, which revolutionized agriculture at the time.
Additionally, James Gourley, born in 1842, was a Scottish botanist who made significant contributions to the study of plant life in Australia, where he lived and worked for many years.
The surname Gourley has a rich history rooted in Scotland, with various notable individuals bearing the name throughout the centuries. While the name has evolved in spelling, its origins can be traced back to the Gaelic language and a connection to verdant or green areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gourley
Among Census respondents with the surname Gourley, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Gourley 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 Gourley surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.4% · 5,176
- Two or more races3.4% · 192
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 183
- Black or African American1.0% · 55
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.6% · 32
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gourley
Gourley 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
#5,826
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,934
+67 bearers (+1.1%)
Per 100,000 2.01
Rank movement Down 370 places
2020
#5,872
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,662
-272 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 1.89
Rank movement Down 46 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,456 | 5,867 | 2.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,826 | 5,934 | 2.01 | +67 bearers (+1.1%) | Down 370 places |
| 2020 | #5,872 | 5,662 | 1.89 | -272 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 46 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 Gourley 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 | #5,826 | #5,872 | -0.8% |
| Count | 5,934 | 5,662 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 2.01 | 1.89 | -5.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gourley bearers went from 5,934 to 5,662 (-4.6% change). The surname moved down 46 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,826 to #5,872.
FAQ
Gourley surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gourley?
Name Census estimates that about 6,493 living Americans carry the surname Gourley. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 52,788 residents.
How common is Gourley?
Gourley ranks #5,872 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.89 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,662 people with the surname Gourley. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,493), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.89 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.89 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Gourley.
Has Gourley become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gourley went from 5,934 recorded bearers to 5,662. That is a decrease of 272 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,826 to #5,872.
What does the Census say about the background of Gourley?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gourley, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.4%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Gourley in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.4% (5,176 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gourley appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.4%), Two or More Races (3.4%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Gourley (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 Gourley mean?
A Scottish toponymic surname derived from a place name meaning "filthy bog" in Gaelic. 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 Gourley (1.89 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 common is the surname Gourley?
You can see how many people have the last name Gourley on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.