Gal surname: meaning, census count and records | FamilyCrests

The Gal surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 1,179 people carried this name — #22,000 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 250,000 people counted. That is up 27% from 927 in 2000.

See Gal on the map Look up another surname

Share

What the name means

The meaning of the Gal surname

From a Slavic pet form of Latin Gallus (“Gaul”), common in medieval Europe.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Gał» (Polish), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In Poland’s population register

1,810 people named Gal have a registered home in Poland.

Of the 2,110 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 15 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Lesser Poland.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Lesser Poland 1,115
Łódź 133
Silesian 117
Lower Silesian 91
Masovian 91
Pomeranian 50
Subcarpathian 45
Lublin 37

PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 1,148 people named Gal.

57 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 61 départements, most often Var.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they were born

Born outside France 57
Var 163
Gard 156
Haute-Savoie 125
Aveyron 104
Hérault 77
Paris 74
Lozère 60
Alpes-Maritimes 43

Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 210 people named Gal live in Argentina.

RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 134
Misiones 34
Santa Cruz 27
City of Buenos Aires 15

RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

204 people named Gal live in Switzerland.

They live in 13 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

Zurich 48
Thurgau 31
Bern 27
Geneva 20
St. Gallen 19
Aargau 16
Vaud 13
Basel-Stadt 10

Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.

In the Nordic population registers

135 people named Gal is counted in Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 135

Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).

Who carried it

People named Gal,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Jože Gal
    Jože Gal d. 2018 · photographer
  • Nora Gal
    Nora Gal 1912–1991 · poet
  • Uziel Gal
    Uziel Gal 1923–2002 · military personnel
  • Uziel Gal
    Uziel Gal 1923–2002 · military personnel
  • Amparo Gal Lloberas d. 1916
  • Jules Gal 1857–1927 · writer

Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Gal.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Gal is.
A volume says what happened to it.

Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.

See what a volume holds
Scroll to Top