2000
#50,261
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 391
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.14
Very Rare Last name
Godkin
A surname derived from the medieval personal name "Godkin", a diminutive of "God".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 530 Americans carry the last name Godkin. That puts it at #49,237 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.15 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 646,706 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Godkin 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 Godkin with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
530
1 in 646,706
Census rank
#49,237
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
462
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 462 bearers of the surname Godkin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.15 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 49237th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Godkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Godkin
The surname Godkin has its roots in England, with records dating back to the late 12th century. It is believed to be derived from the Old English words "god" and "cyn," meaning "good" and "kin" or "family," respectively. This suggests the name may have originally referred to a person of noble or virtuous lineage.
One of the earliest documented mentions of the Godkin surname can be found in the Pipe Rolls of Yorkshire from 1195, which recorded a person named Godwin de Godechine. This spelling variation highlights the evolution of the name over time, with various forms such as Godkyn, Godekyn, and Godkin emerging in different regions.
During the medieval period, the Godkin name appeared in several historical records, including the Hundred Rolls of 1273, which listed individuals like William Godekyn in Oxfordshire and Roger Godekyn in Cambridgeshire. The Subsidy Rolls of 1327 also mentioned a John Godekyn in Warwickshire.
One notable figure bearing the Godkin surname was Sir Thomas Godkin (c. 1550-1604), an English politician and Member of Parliament for Tregony, Cornwall, during the reign of Queen Elizabeth I. Another prominent individual was James Godkin (1806-1879), an Irish-born journalist and political writer who founded the Nation newspaper in New York City.
Other historical figures with the Godkin surname include Reverend William Godkin (1565-1616), an English clergyman who served as the Rector of Newington in Kent, and Edwin Lawrence Godkin (1831-1902), an American journalist and editor-in-chief of The Nation magazine and The Evening Post.
In the artistic realm, John Godkin (1886-1965) was a British painter and illustrator known for his works depicting rural scenes and landscapes, while William Godkin (1918-1996) was a Canadian novelist and short story writer whose works explored themes of identity and the human condition.
The Godkin name has also been associated with various locations, such as the village of Godkin in Somerset, England, and the Godkin Township in Atchison County, Missouri, United States, which was likely named after a family bearing this surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Godkin
Among Census respondents with the surname Godkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Godkin 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 Godkin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.5% · 372
- Hispanic or Latino9.1% · 42
- Two or more races5.2% · 24
- Asian and Pacific Islander4.8% · 22
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Godkin
Godkin 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
#47,429
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 447
+56 bearers (+14.3%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Up 2,832 places
2020
#49,237
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 462
+15 bearers (+3.4%)
Per 100,000 0.15
Rank movement Down 1,808 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #50,261 | 391 | 0.14 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #47,429 | 447 | 0.15 | +56 bearers (+14.3%) | Up 2,832 places |
| 2020 | #49,237 | 462 | 0.15 | +15 bearers (+3.4%) | Down 1,808 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 Godkin 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 | #47,429 | #49,237 | -3.8% |
| Count | 447 | 462 | 3.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.15 | 0.15 | 3.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Godkin bearers went from 447 to 462 (+3.4% change). The surname moved down 1,808 positions in the national ranking, going from #47,429 to #49,237.
FAQ
Godkin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Godkin?
Name Census estimates that about 530 living Americans carry the surname Godkin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 646,706 residents.
How common is Godkin?
Godkin ranks #49,237 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 462 people with the surname Godkin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (530), 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 Godkin.
Has Godkin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Godkin went from 447 recorded bearers to 462. That is an increase of 15 (+3.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #47,429 to #49,237.
What does the Census say about the background of Godkin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Godkin, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (9.1%) and Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Godkin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.5% (372 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Godkin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.5%), Hispanic (9.1%), Two or More Races (5.2%). 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 Godkin (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 Godkin mean?
A surname derived from the medieval personal name "Godkin", a diminutive of "God". 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 Godkin (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 share the surname Godkin?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.