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

Gregor, 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 Gregor surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Gregor in America

Gregor is the 7915th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Gregor surname appeared 4,180 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Gregor.

We can also compare 2010 data for Gregor 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 Gregor

The surname "GREGOR" is of Scottish origin and dates back to the 16th century. It is derived from the Greek name "Gregorios", meaning "watchful" or "vigilant". The name was likely brought to Scotland by Christian missionaries who sought to spread the faith in the region.

The earliest recorded instance of the surname can be found in the Scottish parish records from the late 1500s, where it appears as "Gregour" and "Greigour". These early spellings reflect the phonetic variations that were common before standardized spelling became more widespread.

One of the earliest known bearers of the name was John Gregor, a Scottish landowner who lived in the late 16th century. Records indicate he owned property in the Aberdeenshire region, which was likely how the surname became established in that area.

In the 17th century, the name appears in various historical documents, including the Baillie's Register of Glasgow, where a merchant named Robert Gregor is mentioned in the year 1635. This suggests the name had spread to urban centers by this time.

As the centuries progressed, the Gregor surname became more widely dispersed throughout Scotland and beyond. Notable individuals bearing this name include:

1. Walter Gregor (1799-1887), a Scottish minister and folklore collector who published extensively on the traditions and customs of the North-East of Scotland.

2. William Gregor (1761-1817), a Cornish clergyman and mineralogist who discovered the metal titanium in 1791.

3. Everett Gregor (1913-1994), an American baseball player who played for the Boston Red Sox and the Philadelphia Phillies in the 1930s and 1940s.

4. Aleksandr Gregor (1875-1965), a Russian-born American chemist who made significant contributions to the development of synthetic rubber during World War II.

5. Iain Gregor (born 1958), a Scottish actor best known for his roles in television series such as "Taggart" and "Rebus".

While the Gregor surname has its roots in Scotland, it has since spread to various parts of the world, carried by emigrants and descendants of Scottish families. Today, it remains a notable surname with a rich historical legacy.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Gregor

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

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 Gregor 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 Gregor 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 Gregor was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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