Explore the Family Name Gaff

The meaning of Gaff

1. English: metonymic occupational name for someone who made or used iron hooks or crooks, from Old French gaffe ‘iron hook’. 2. Irish (Offaly): from Mag Eochadha, see McGough. 3. German: from a derivative of the stem geb- (see Gaffke).

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Gaff in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Gaff has experienced a slight decrease in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, Gaff was ranked 24,724 in popularity, but by 2010 it had slipped to 25,226—a change of -2.03%. Despite this drop in rank, the actual count of people with the surname Gaff increased from 946 in 2000 to 982 in 2010, reflecting a growth of 3.81%. However, when considering the proportion per 100k, there was a decrease of -5.71%, from 0.35 in 2000 to 0.33 in 2010.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#24,724	#25,226	-2.03%
Count	946	982	3.81%
Proportion per 100k	0.35	0.33	-5.71%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Gaff

Regarding the ethnic identity associated with the surname Gaff, Decennial U.S. Census data reveals a predominantly white demographic. In 2000, 96.72% of individuals with the surname identified as white, slightly decreasing to 95.62% in 2010. The Hispanic population with the Gaff surname saw an increase of 56.20%, growing from 1.37% in 2000 to 2.14% in 2010. Moreover, those identifying as two or more races also rose notably from 0.85% to 1.22%. The Black community and American Indian and Alaskan Native community had changes as well, though the specifics were suppressed (S) for privacy reasons. It should be noted that there were no individuals with the Gaff surname who identified as Asian/Pacific Islander during these years.

	2000	2010	Change
White	96.72%	95.62%	-1.14%
Hispanic	1.37%	2.14%	56.2%
Two or More Races	0.85%	1.22%	43.53%
Black	0%	0.61%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0.53%	0%	0%