2000
#7,391
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,158
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.54
Rare Last name
Gregor
A surname derived from the Latin name Gregorius, meaning "watchful" or "alert."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,643 Americans carry the last name Gregor. That puts it at #7,855 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.35 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 73,822 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gregor 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 Gregor with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.6K
1 in 73,822
Census rank
#7,855
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,049 bearers of the surname Gregor in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.35 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7855th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gregor, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of 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In the 17th century, the name appears in various historical documents, including the Baillie's Register of Glasgow, where a merchant named Robert Gregor is mentioned in the year 1635.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.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gregor
Among Census respondents with the surname Gregor, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%).
The bar chart below shows how Gregor 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 Gregor surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.7% · 3,674
- Two or more races3.9% · 157
- Hispanic or Latino3.7% · 148
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.7% · 27
- Black or African American0.6% · 25
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gregor
Gregor 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
#7,915
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,180
+22 bearers (+0.5%)
Per 100,000 1.42
Rank movement Down 524 places
2020
#7,855
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,049
-131 bearers (-3.1%)
Per 100,000 1.35
Rank movement Up 60 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,391 | 4,158 | 1.54 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,915 | 4,180 | 1.42 | +22 bearers (+0.5%) | Down 524 places |
| 2020 | #7,855 | 4,049 | 1.35 | -131 bearers (-3.1%) | Up 60 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 Gregor 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 | #7,915 | #7,855 | 0.8% |
| Count | 4,180 | 4,049 | -3.1% |
| Per 100K | 1.42 | 1.35 | -4.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gregor bearers went from 4,180 to 4,049 (-3.1% change). The surname moved up 60 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,915 to #7,855.
FAQ
Gregor surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gregor?
Name Census estimates that about 4,643 living Americans carry the surname Gregor. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 73,822 residents.
How common is Gregor?
Gregor ranks #7,855 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.35 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 4,049 people with the surname Gregor. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,643), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.35 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.35 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 Gregor.
Has Gregor become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gregor went from 4,180 recorded bearers to 4,049. That is a decrease of 131 (-3.1%). In the national ranking it rose from #7,915 to #7,855.
What does the Census say about the background of Gregor?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gregor, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.7%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.9%) and Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Gregor in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.7% (3,674 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gregor appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.7%), Two or More Races (3.9%), Hispanic (3.7%). 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 Gregor (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 Gregor mean?
A surname derived from the Latin name Gregorius, meaning "watchful" or "alert." 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 Gregor (1.35 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 Gregor?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.