Explore the Family Name Thurgood

The meaning of Thurgood

English (Essex, Middlesex and Hertfordshire): from the Middle English personal name Thurgod (Old Norse Thorgautr), composed of the Thórr, the name of the Norse god of thunder (see Thor) + the ethnic name Gautr (see Joslin), influenced in some cases by common English words such as ‘good’.

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

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

According to the Decennial U.S. Census, the popularity of the surname 'Thurgood' has increased from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it was ranked 28,142 and by 2010, its rank improved to 25,701 – a relative change of 8.67 percent. The count of individuals with this surname also increased during this decade, going from 801 to 959, marking a growth rate of 19.73 percent. Consequently, the proportion of people named Thurgood per 100,000 increased by 10 percent over the same period.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#28,142	#25,701	8.67%
Count	801	959	19.73%
Proportion per 100k	0.3	0.33	10%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Thurgood

The Decennial U.S. Census data further shows a slight shift in the ethnic identity of individuals bearing the 'Thurgood' surname between 2000 and 2010. The majority of Thurgoods identified as White, but this percentage decreased slightly from 95.38 percent to 93.53 percent. Meanwhile, the proportion of Thurgoods identifying as Hispanic and Black saw increases of 23.11 percent and 32.00 percent respectively. A new category emerged in 2010, with 1.25 percent of Thurgoods identifying with two or more races. No Thurgoods identified as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native in either census year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	95.38%	93.53%	-1.94%
Hispanic	2.12%	2.61%	23.11%
Black	1.5%	1.98%	32%
Two or More Races	0%	1.25%	0%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0%	0%	0%