2010
#160,975
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 100
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.03
Very Rare Last name
Gyllenskog
A Swedish surname derived from "gyllen skog" meaning "golden forest".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Gyllenskog. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gyllenskog 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Gyllenskog in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gyllenskog, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gyllenskog
The surname GYLLENSKOG originates from Sweden and dates back to the 17th century. It is a Swedish locational surname derived from the Old Swedish words "gyllen" meaning "golden" and "skog" meaning "forest". The name likely referred to someone who lived near or owned a golden-hued forest or woodland area.
Records show that the name first appeared in the parish registers of Västergötland, a province in southwestern Sweden, around the mid-1600s. Some of the earliest recorded variations of the spelling include Gyllenskough, Gyllenskog, and Gyllenskog.
One of the earliest known bearers of the name was Nils Gyllenskog, a farmer who lived in the village of Skara in Västergötland in the late 17th century. Another early record is of Anders Gyllenskog, a blacksmith from the town of Falköping, also in Västergötland, who was mentioned in tax records from 1683.
In the 18th century, the name spread to other parts of Sweden, with bearers recorded in Stockholm, Gothenburg, and Malmö. A notable figure from this era was Johan Gyllenskog, a merchant from Gothenburg who was born in 1725 and became a respected member of the city's mercantile community.
During the 19th century, several individuals with the surname GYLLENSKOG achieved distinction in various fields. Erik Gyllenskog (1801-1879) was a renowned linguist and professor at the University of Uppsala, while Carl Gyllenskog (1824-1892) was a celebrated artist whose paintings captured scenes of rural Swedish life.
Another prominent bearer of the name was Emma Gyllenskog (1860-1928), a pioneering feminist and activist who campaigned for women's suffrage and equal rights in Sweden. She was also a talented writer and published several works of fiction and non-fiction.
Moving into the 20th century, Gustaf Gyllenskog (1904-1982) was a highly regarded architect who designed several notable buildings in Stockholm, including the Stockholm Public Library and the Swedish Museum of Natural History.
While the surname GYLLENSKOG is relatively uncommon outside of Sweden, it has a rich historical legacy and continues to be associated with individuals who have made significant contributions to Swedish culture, academia, and society.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gyllenskog
Among Census respondents with the surname Gyllenskog, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Gyllenskog 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 Gyllenskog surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White98.0% · 97
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
- Hispanic or Latino1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gyllenskog
Gyllenskog appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-1 bearers (-1.0%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Up 4,970 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #160,975 | 100 | 0.03 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -1 bearers (-1.0%) | Up 4,970 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 Gyllenskog 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 | #160,975 | #156,005 | 3.1% |
| Count | 100 | 99 | -1.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.03 | 0.03 | 10.4% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gyllenskog bearers went from 100 to 99 (-1.0% change). The surname moved up 4,970 positions in the national ranking, going from #160,975 to #156,005.
FAQ
Gyllenskog surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gyllenskog?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Gyllenskog. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Gyllenskog?
Gyllenskog ranks #156,005 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 99 people with the surname Gyllenskog. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Gyllenskog.
Has Gyllenskog become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gyllenskog went from 100 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 1 (-1.0%). In the national ranking it rose from #160,975 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Gyllenskog?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gyllenskog, the largest self-reported group is White at 98.0%. The next largest groups are Black (1.0%) and Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Gyllenskog in the 2020 Census, accounting for 98.0% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gyllenskog appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (98.0%), Black (1.0%), Hispanic (1.0%). 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 Gyllenskog (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 Gyllenskog mean?
A Swedish surname derived from "gyllen skog" meaning "golden forest". 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 Gyllenskog (0.03 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 have the last name Gyllenskog?
Find out how many people are called Gyllenskog on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — a quick modern estimate with the living-bearer count front and centre.