How common is the surname Gao?

12,172 people in the United States had the surname Gao in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,365 Americans. It ranked 2,948th of 162,253 surnames.

Who is the most famous person named Gao?

William Gao, British actor, singer and model, followed by Gao Xiang.

Where is the surname Gao most common?

Wikidata records people named Gao in the United Kingdom, Shu Han and the People's Republic of China.

Is the surname Gao getting more or less common?

More common. 5,405 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 12,172 in 2010, up 125%.

The surname Gao

A surname, carried by 12,172 people in the United States.

Pronounced /ɡaʊ/ 1 syllable Soundex G000

Every surname held by 100 or more people in the 2010 US Census, most common on the left (162,253 in all). Gao is more common than 98.2% of them.

Origin

From Mandarin 高 (Gāo).

Origin from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0).

How common it is

2010 US Census

There were 12,172 people named Gao in the United States in 2010, about 1 in every 25,365 Americans. That is up 125% since 2000, when the Census counted 5,405.

#2,948

rank among US surnames

12,172

people in 2010

4.1

per 100,000 Americans

+125.2%

change since 2000 (was #5,866)

Rank	Surname	People	1 in
#2,939	Farnsworth	12,203	25,301
#2,940	Herrick	12,202	25,303
#2,942	Nunes	12,191	25,326
#2,943	Harley	12,186	25,336
#2,944	Talbert	12,181	25,346
#2,946	Hopson	12,180	25,349
#2,947	Waterman	12,177	25,355

Who is named Gao

Race and Hispanic origin as people reported it in the 2010 Census

97% of people named Gao identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, 1.2% as white (not Hispanic).

Asian and Pacific Islander 97%
White (not Hispanic) 1.2%
Two or more races 0.6%
Hispanic or Latino (any race) 0.4%

The Census suppresses very small shares to protect privacy; Black, Native American are not shown.

Compare: most common surnames among Asian and Pacific Islander Americans.

Famous Gaos

3 notable people on Wikidata, most written-about first

William Gao
British actor, singer and model, born 2003
Gao Xiang
3rd century Chinese Shu Han state general, 150–201
Gao Hong
Association footballer, born 1967

Notable Gaos come mostly from the United Kingdom (1), Shu Han (1) and the People's Republic of China (1).

Spellings and sound-alikes

Useful when a record has your ancestor under another spelling

Variant spellings

Surnames that sound like Gao

Gao has the Soundex code G000, the code US census indexes have used since the 1930s. Every surname with code G000.

Questions

Where does the surname Gao come from?: From Mandarin 高 (Gāo).
How common is the surname Gao?: 12,172 people in the United States had the surname Gao in the 2010 Census, about 1 in every 25,365 Americans. It ranked 2,948th of 162,253 surnames.
What ethnicity is the surname Gao?: In the 2010 Census, 97% of people named Gao identified as Asian and Pacific Islander, and 1.2% as white (not Hispanic).
Who is the most famous person named Gao?: William Gao, British actor, singer and model, followed by Gao Xiang.
Where is the surname Gao most common?: Wikidata records people named Gao in the United Kingdom, Shu Han and the People's Republic of China.
How do you pronounce Gao?: Gao is /ɡaʊ/, one syllable.
Is the surname Gao getting more or less common?: More common. 5,405 people carried it in the 2000 Census and 12,172 in 2010, up 125%.
What are other spellings of Gao?: Gau and Kao.