2000
#8,107
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,768
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.40
Rare Last name
Gress
A surname of German origin, derived from the word "gras," meaning grass or herb.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,118 Americans carry the last name Gress. That puts it at #8,766 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.20 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 83,233 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gress 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.
Bearers in the US
4.1K
1 in 83,233
Census rank
#8,766
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.6K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,591 bearers of the surname Gress in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.20 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 8766th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gress, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gress
The surname GRESS is believed to have originated in the region of Saxony in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is thought to be derived from the Old Germanic word "gras," meaning grass or grassy meadow. This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived in or near a grassy area.
One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name GRESS can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony dating back to the 9th century. In this text, a certain "Gresso de Lipsia" (Gress of Leipzig) is mentioned as owning land near the city of Leipzig in the year 1249.
The name also appears in the Bederoll, a census-like record of property owners and taxpayers in the Electorate of Saxony from the 15th century. Several individuals with the surname GRESS are listed, including Hans Gress of Meissen (1427-1498) and Peter Gress of Dresden (1452-1519).
During the 16th century, the spelling of the name varied, with examples such as "Gresse," "Gresz," and "Grasz" appearing in various records and documents from different regions of Germany.
One notable figure in history with the surname GRESS was Johann Gress (1592-1668), a German mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the development of logarithms and the calculation of planetary orbits.
Another individual of note was Friedrich Gress (1768-1834), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and portraits. His works can be found in several art museums across Europe.
In the 19th century, the GRESS surname began to spread beyond Germany, with individuals bearing the name immigrating to other parts of Europe and North America. One example is Wilhelm Gress (1836-1902), a German-American politician and businessman who served as the mayor of Buffalo, New York, in the late 1800s.
Other notable individuals with the surname GRESS include Hans Gress (1878-1957), a Swiss architect known for his work on several iconic buildings in Zurich, and Edith Gress (1917-1992), an American novelist and playwright whose works explored themes of social justice and feminism.
Overall, the surname GRESS has a rich history that can be traced back to medieval Germany, where it likely originated as a descriptor of someone living in or near a grassy area. Over the centuries, individuals bearing this name have made significant contributions to various fields, including mathematics, art, politics, and literature.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gress
Among Census respondents with the surname Gress, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gress 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 Gress surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.8% · 3,224
- Hispanic or Latino6.8% · 243
- Two or more races2.0% · 72
- Black or African American0.7% · 24
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 5
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gress
Gress 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
#8,556
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,850
+82 bearers (+2.2%)
Per 100,000 1.31
Rank movement Down 449 places
2020
#8,766
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,591
-259 bearers (-6.7%)
Per 100,000 1.20
Rank movement Down 210 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #8,107 | 3,768 | 1.40 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,556 | 3,850 | 1.31 | +82 bearers (+2.2%) | Down 449 places |
| 2020 | #8,766 | 3,591 | 1.20 | -259 bearers (-6.7%) | Down 210 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 Gress 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 | #8,556 | #8,766 | -2.5% |
| Count | 3,850 | 3,591 | -6.7% |
| Per 100K | 1.31 | 1.20 | -8.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gress bearers went from 3,850 to 3,591 (-6.7% change). The surname moved down 210 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,556 to #8,766.
FAQ
Gress surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gress?
Name Census estimates that about 4,118 living Americans carry the surname Gress. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 83,233 residents.
How common is Gress?
Gress ranks #8,766 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.20 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 3,591 people with the surname Gress. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,118), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.2 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.20 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 Gress.
Has Gress become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gress went from 3,850 recorded bearers to 3,591. That is a decrease of 259 (-6.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,556 to #8,766.
What does the Census say about the background of Gress?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gress, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.8%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.8%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Gress in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.8% (3,224 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gress appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.8%), Hispanic (6.8%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Gress (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 Gress mean?
A surname of German origin, derived from the word "gras," meaning grass or herb. 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 Gress (1.20 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 Gress?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.