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Gordon Family History

Gordon Surname Meaning

Scottish: habitational name from Gordon in Berwickshire named with Welsh gor ‘spacious’ + din ‘fort’. English (of Norman origin): habitational name from Gourdon in Saône-et-Loire so called from the Gallo-Roman personal name Gordus + the locative suffix -o -ōnis. English (of Norman origin): alternatively said to be a nickname from a diminutive of Old French gourd ‘heavy dull sluggish’ (compare 8 below). Irish: adopted as an English equivalent of Gaelic Mag Mhuirneacháin see Gordan . Jewish (from Lithuania): probably a habitational name from the Belorussian city of Grodno. Spanish and Galician (Gordón); Basque: habitational name from a place called Gordón (Spanish Galician) or Gordon (Basque) of which there are examples in Salamanca Galicia and Basque Country.7: Spanish: possibly in some instances from an augmentative of the nickname Gordo (see Gordillo ).8: French: of Scottish origin (see 1 above) or a variant of Gourdon (and in North America perhaps also an altered form of this) a nickname derived from Old French gourd ‘heavy dull sluggish’ (see Gourd compare 3 above).9: Americanized form of French Godin .

Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022


Similar surnames: Cordon, Norden, Bordon, Gorton, Gardon, Moron, Garzon, Jordan

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Where is the Gordon family from?

You can see how Gordon families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Gordon family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Gordon families were found in USA in 1880. In 1840 there were 206 Gordon families living in New York. This was about 15% of all the recorded Gordon's in USA. New York had the highest population of Gordon families in 1840.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Gordon surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.

What did your Gordon ancestors do for a living?

In 1940, Laborer and Maid were the top reported jobs for men and women in the USA named Gordon. 13% of Gordon men worked as a Laborer and 7% of Gordon women worked as a Maid. Some less common occupations for Americans named Gordon were Clerk and Teacher. .

View Census Data for Gordon | Data not to scale

*We display top occupations by gender to maintain their historical accuracy during times when men and women often performed different jobs.

Top Male Occupations In 1940

  • Laborer
    13%
  • Farmer
    11%
  • Salesman
    7%
  • Clerk
    3%

Top Female Occupations In 1940

  • Maid
    7%
  • Housewife
    6%
  • Stenographer
    6%
  • Teacher
    5%
Black & white image of two construction labourers

What Gordon family records will you find?

Census Records

There are 1 million census records available for the last name Gordon. Like a window into their day-to-day life, Gordon census records can tell you where and how your ancestors worked, their level of education, veteran status, and more.

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Passenger Lists

There are 204,000 immigration records available for the last name Gordon. Passenger lists are your ticket to knowing when your ancestors arrived in the USA, and how they made the journey - from the ship name to ports of arrival and departure.

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Draft Cards

There are 201,000 military records available for the last name Gordon. For the veterans among your Gordon ancestors, military collections provide insights into where and when they served, and even physical descriptions.

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What is the average Gordon lifespan?

Between 1941 and 2004, in the United States, Gordon life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1944, and highest in 2004. The average life expectancy for Gordon in 1941 was 42, and 75 in 2004.

View Social Security Death Index (SSDI) for Gordon

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