2000
#12,955
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,171
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Gowdy
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place name meaning "smith's place" in Old English.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,609 Americans carry the last name Gowdy. That puts it at #12,915 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.76 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 131,374 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gowdy 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 Gowdy with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.6K
1 in 131,374
Census rank
#12,915
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.8
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.3K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,275 bearers of the surname Gowdy in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.76 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 12915th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gowdy, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.5%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gowdy
The surname Gowdy is of Scottish origin, derived from the Gaelic personal name "Goddrie" or "Gothric," which itself derives from the Old Norse name "Guðröðr." The earliest recorded instances of this surname date back to the 13th century in the Lanarkshire region of Scotland.
The name Gowdy is believed to have originated as a habitational name, referring to someone who lived in a particular location or settlement. One theory suggests that the name may have derived from the place name "Goudie" or "Goudie," which could have been a small village or farm in Scotland.
Historical records show that the Gowdy surname appeared in various Scottish documents and manuscripts throughout the Middle Ages. For instance, a mention of "John Gowdy" can be found in the Exchequer Rolls of Scotland from the year 1456.
In the 16th century, the Gowdy family was prominent in the Scottish Borders region, particularly in the areas around Jedburgh and Hawick. One notable figure from this time was Robert Gowdy, a merchant and burgess of Jedburgh, who lived in the late 1500s.
During the 17th century, several members of the Gowdy family emigrated to Ireland, where they settled in counties like Antrim and Down. This Irish branch of the family sometimes spelled their name as "Goudy" or "Gowdie."
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Gowdy surname in America dates back to 1718, when John Gowdy arrived in Boston from Ireland. Another early American bearer of this name was William Gowdy, who was born in Scotland in 1712 and later settled in Pennsylvania.
Other notable individuals with the Gowdy surname include:
1. Robert Gowdy (1778-1856), a Scottish-born merchant and landowner in Nova Scotia, Canada.
2. James Gowdy (1815-1888), a Canadian politician and lawyer from Ontario.
3. James Gowdy (1871-1938), an American author and educator from Illinois.
4. Curt Gowdy (1919-2006), an American sportscaster and broadcaster, best known for his work with the Boston Red Sox.
5. Trey Gowdy (born 1964), an American lawyer and politician who served as a U.S. Representative from South Carolina.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gowdy
Among Census respondents with the surname Gowdy, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.5%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Gowdy 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 Gowdy surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White54.5% · 1,240
- Black or African American37.4% · 851
- Two or more races3.6% · 82
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 72
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 13
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gowdy
Gowdy 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
#13,383
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,276
+105 bearers (+4.8%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 428 places
2020
#12,915
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,275
-1 bearers (-0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.76
Rank movement Up 468 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,955 | 2,171 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,383 | 2,276 | 0.77 | +105 bearers (+4.8%) | Down 428 places |
| 2020 | #12,915 | 2,275 | 0.76 | -1 bearers (-0.0%) | Up 468 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 Gowdy 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 | #13,383 | #12,915 | 3.5% |
| Count | 2,276 | 2,275 | -0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.77 | 0.76 | -1.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gowdy bearers went from 2,276 to 2,275 (+-0.0% change). The surname moved up 468 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,383 to #12,915.
FAQ
Gowdy surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gowdy?
Name Census estimates that about 2,609 living Americans carry the surname Gowdy. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 131,374 residents.
How common is Gowdy?
Gowdy ranks #12,915 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.76 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 2,275 people with the surname Gowdy. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,609), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.76 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.76 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 Gowdy.
Has Gowdy become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gowdy went from 2,276 recorded bearers to 2,275. That is a decrease of 1 (-0.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #13,383 to #12,915.
What does the Census say about the background of Gowdy?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gowdy, the largest self-reported group is White at 54.5%. The next largest groups are Black (37.4%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Gowdy in the 2020 Census, accounting for 54.5% (1,240 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gowdy appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (54.5%), Black (37.4%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Gowdy (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 Gowdy mean?
A Scottish locational surname derived from a place name meaning "smith's place" in Old English. 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 Gowdy (0.76 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 Americans have the surname Gowdy?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.