2000
#5,369
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,967
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.21
Rare Last name
Gosselin
A French toponymic surname derived from several places in northern France with Germanic roots meaning "district of the Goths."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 6,658 Americans carry the last name Gosselin. That puts it at #5,748 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.94 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 51,480 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gosselin 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
6.7K
1 in 51,480
Census rank
#5,748
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.9
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
5.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 5,806 bearers of the surname Gosselin in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.94 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 5748th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gosselin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gosselin
The surname GOSSELIN originated in France, with the earliest records dating back to the 11th century. It is derived from the Old French word "gosselin," which means "young man" or "youth." This term likely evolved from the Latin word "gossipinus," meaning "godchild" or "godson."
The name GOSSELIN was initially concentrated in the northern regions of France, particularly in Normandy and Brittany. It is believed that the name was first adopted by families in these areas, possibly as a nickname or a way to distinguish individuals within a community.
One of the earliest known references to the name GOSSELIN can be found in the Domesday Book, a comprehensive survey of landowners and property holdings in England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. The entry mentions a certain "Goscelinus" as a landowner in Lincolnshire, indicating that the name had already spread to England by the late 11th century.
In the 12th century, a notable figure named Gosselin de Vire (c. 1120-1188) was a French trouvère, or poet-composer, known for his contributions to the development of courtly love poetry. He is considered one of the earliest known composers of secular music in the French language.
Another prominent individual with the surname GOSSELIN was Jean Gosselin (c. 1505-1584), a French historian and clergyman who served as the abbot of the Abbey of Saint-Wandrille in Normandy. He is best known for his historical writings, including a chronicle of the Norman dukes and a history of the abbey he presided over.
During the 16th century, a French explorer named Jacques Gosselin (c. 1540-1610) is recorded as having participated in several expeditions to the Americas, including the ill-fated attempt to establish a colony in what is now South Carolina in 1562.
In the 18th century, Pierre-Frédéric Gosselin (1751-1830) was a French geographer and historian who authored several influential works on ancient geography and the history of Greece and Rome.
The name GOSSELIN also has ties to various place names in France, such as Gosselin-Ville, a commune in the Manche department of Normandy, and Gosselies, a municipality in the Belgian province of Hainaut, which was historically part of the County of Hainaut under French rule.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gosselin
Among Census respondents with the surname Gosselin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Gosselin 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 Gosselin surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.5% · 5,373
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 202
- Two or more races2.8% · 161
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 45
- Black or African American0.3% · 18
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 7
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gosselin
Gosselin 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
#5,681
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,104
+137 bearers (+2.3%)
Per 100,000 2.07
Rank movement Down 312 places
2020
#5,748
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 5,806
-298 bearers (-4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.94
Rank movement Down 67 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #5,369 | 5,967 | 2.21 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #5,681 | 6,104 | 2.07 | +137 bearers (+2.3%) | Down 312 places |
| 2020 | #5,748 | 5,806 | 1.94 | -298 bearers (-4.9%) | Down 67 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 Gosselin 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 | #5,681 | #5,748 | -1.2% |
| Count | 6,104 | 5,806 | -4.9% |
| Per 100K | 2.07 | 1.94 | -6.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gosselin bearers went from 6,104 to 5,806 (-4.9% change). The surname moved down 67 positions in the national ranking, going from #5,681 to #5,748.
FAQ
Gosselin surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gosselin?
Name Census estimates that about 6,658 living Americans carry the surname Gosselin. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 51,480 residents.
How common is Gosselin?
Gosselin ranks #5,748 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.94 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 5,806 people with the surname Gosselin. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (6,658), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.94 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.94 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Gosselin.
Has Gosselin become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gosselin went from 6,104 recorded bearers to 5,806. That is a decrease of 298 (-4.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #5,681 to #5,748.
What does the Census say about the background of Gosselin?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gosselin, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Gosselin in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.5% (5,373 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gosselin appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.5%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Gosselin (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 Gosselin mean?
A French toponymic surname derived from several places in northern France with Germanic roots meaning "district of the Goths." 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 Gosselin (1.94 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 Gosselin?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.