2000
#51,233
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 382
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Gummo
An Italian surname, most likely from the Latin word "gumma" meaning knob or bud.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 499 Americans carry the last name Gummo. That puts it at #51,662 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 686,882 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gummo 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
499
1 in 686,882
Census rank
#51,662
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
435
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 435 bearers of the surname Gummo in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 51662nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gummo, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gummo
The surname GUMMO is believed to have originated in England during the medieval period. It is thought to be a variation of the Old English name Gumma, which was derived from the Old English word "guma," meaning "man" or "warrior."
The earliest recorded instance of the name GUMMO can be found in the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "Gumma." This suggests that the name was already in use in England by the time of the Norman Conquest in 1066.
Throughout the Middle Ages, the name GUMMO was primarily concentrated in the counties of Lincolnshire and Yorkshire, where it was often associated with place names such as Gummo's Grange or Gummo's Hill. In the 13th century, a man named Robert Gummo was listed as a landowner in the village of Gummo's Grange, near Lincoln.
By the 16th century, the spelling of the name had evolved to its modern form, GUMMO. One notable bearer of this surname was Sir John Gummo (1525-1602), a wealthy merchant and Member of Parliament for the city of Bristol during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I.
In the 17th century, the name GUMMO spread beyond its traditional heartlands in the East Midlands and Yorkshire. One prominent figure from this era was Thomas Gummo (1638-1718), a Puritan clergyman who served as the rector of St. Mary's Church in Nottingham.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, several GUMMO families emigrated from England to the British colonies in North America and the Caribbean. One such individual was William Gummo (1745-1823), a loyalist from Virginia who served as a captain in the British army during the American Revolutionary War.
Another notable bearer of the GUMMO surname was the English artist and illustrator George Gummo (1812-1888), who was best known for his watercolor paintings of landscapes and rural scenes.
In more recent times, the name GUMMO has also been associated with the American filmmaker Harmony Korine, whose 1997 film "Gummo" was named after a fictional character who shared his grandmother's maiden name.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gummo
Among Census respondents with the surname Gummo, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Gummo 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 Gummo surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.5% · 411
- Hispanic or Latino2.8% · 12
- Two or more races1.8% · 8
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 3
- Black or African American0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gummo
Gummo 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
#48,160
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 439
+57 bearers (+14.9%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Up 3,073 places
2020
#51,662
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 435
-4 bearers (-0.9%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Down 3,502 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #51,233 | 382 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #48,160 | 439 | 0.15 | +57 bearers (+14.9%) | Up 3,073 places |
| 2020 | #51,662 | 435 | 0.15 | -4 bearers (-0.9%) | Down 3,502 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 Gummo 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 | #48,160 | #51,662 | -7.3% |
| Count | 439 | 435 | -0.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.15 | 0.15 | -3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gummo bearers went from 439 to 435 (-0.9% change). The surname moved down 3,502 positions in the national ranking, going from #48,160 to #51,662.
FAQ
Gummo surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gummo?
Name Census estimates that about 499 living Americans carry the surname Gummo. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 686,882 residents.
How common is Gummo?
Gummo ranks #51,662 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 435 people with the surname Gummo. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (499), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.15 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.15 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Gummo.
Has Gummo become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gummo went from 439 recorded bearers to 435. That is a decrease of 4 (-0.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #48,160 to #51,662.
What does the Census say about the background of Gummo?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gummo, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.8%) and Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Gummo in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.5% (411 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gummo appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.5%), Hispanic (2.8%), Two or More Races (1.8%). 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 Gummo (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 Gummo mean?
An Italian surname, most likely from the Latin word "gumma" meaning knob or bud. 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 Gummo (0.15 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 people are called Gummo?
You can see how many people have the surname Gummo on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.