The Gerdes surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 5,940 people carried this name — #5,821 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 49,800 people counted. That is up 10% from 5,413 in 2000.

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Where the name comes from

The origin of the Gerdes surname

A patronymic formed from Gerd, Gerhard; it arose in East Frisia.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (de.wiktionary.org, the German edition) — entry «Gerdes», by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · translated from German and condensed.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

57 people named Gerdes live in Switzerland.

They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Zurich 24
Aargau 12
Basel-Landschaft 6
Thurgau 6
Geneva 5
St. Gallen 4

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 Argentina’s national register

At least 43 people named Gerdes 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.

Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.

Where they live today

Buenos Aires Province 43

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

In the Nordic population registers

92 people named Gerdes is counted in Sweden.

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

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 92

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).

In print

Gerdes in American newspapers,
1887–1896.

Newspaper page from New York Journal carrying the name Gerdes
New York Journal 1896-12-13
Newspaper page from The San Francisco Call carrying the name Gerdes
The San Francisco Call 1896-06-20
Newspaper page from Howard Times carrying the name Gerdes
Howard Times 1887-01-22

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 14,944 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Gerdes in Australian newspapers,
1890s–1970s.

733 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Gerdes. The most, 183, date from the 1930s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in Western Australia, at 2.5 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 406
Western Australia 181
Victoria 106
Queensland 26
South Australia 8
ACT (Canberra) 4
Tasmania 1

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Gerdes.

Who carried it

People named Gerdes,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Johannes Gerdes
    Johannes Gerdes 1624–1673 · parson
  • Johannes Gerdes
    Johannes Gerdes 1624–1673 · parson
  • Henning Christoph Gerdes
    Henning Christoph Gerdes 1665–1723 · jurist
  • Johan Gerdes d. 1713 · politician
  • Henning Gerdes 1591–1663 · mayor
  • Sabina Gerdes 1658–1684 · publisher

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 8 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Gerdes,
in the records of 8 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States1,435 records

1,435 records of the Gerdes name in the United States
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 792
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 297
  • Other U.S. records 346
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Raymond H. Gerdes

    Born 1925 in Nebraska. Enlisted 1943 at Portland, Oregon; plumber from Clark County, Washington. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 2000, buried at Willamette National Cemetery, Oregon.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Elise Gerdes

    Arrived at New York in 1893 aboard the Dania from Hamburg, aged 20; farmer. From Altona, Prussia, Germany; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Albert Bruno Gerdes

    Born 1948; from New Orleans, Louisiana. U.S. Army, infantryman; killed in action 1968 in Quang Nam, South Vietnam.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 1,435 records for Gerdes in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Netherlands1,834 records

1,834 records of the Gerdes name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 983
  • Dutch population registers 683
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 168
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Gerhard Heinrich Gerdes

    Married in 1921 in Emmen; labourer. Died 1965 in Emmen, aged 75.

    Open Archives, Drents Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Anna Helena Gerdes

    Married in 1895 in Vlagtwedde; farmer. Died 1916 in Odoorn, aged 81.

    Open Archives, Groninger Archieven (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Drents Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Johan Herman Gerdes

    Married in 1843 in Hardenberg; labourer. Died 1844 in Slagharen (Hardenberg), aged 34.

    Open Archives, Collectie Overijssel locatie Zwolle (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 1,834 records for Gerdes in the Netherlands.

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Germany811 records

811 records of the Gerdes name in Germany
  • Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919 808
  • German emigration and citizenship files 3
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Friedrich Gerdes

    Born 1890; from Ocholt, Westerstede. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 9 October 1916; then reported missing in the list of 5 December 1918 (Infantry Regiment No. 368).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Karl Gerdes

    Left Nußbach for America in 1879; baker.

    Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek / Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg (CC0)
  3. The first page of an emigration file from Gündlingen, Baden, 1883
    Example: German emigration file, 1883
    Emigration record Franz Gerdes

    Left Nußbach for America in 1879; cooper.

    Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek / Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg (CC0)

Showing 3 of 811 records for Gerdes in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0) · Deutsche Digitale Bibliothek (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0); Emigration file, Gündlingen, 1883, Landesarchiv Baden-Württemberg, Staatsarchiv Freiburg B 694/1 Nr. 1389 (CC BY 4.0).

Australia27 records

27 records of the Gerdes name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 17
  • NSW convict, estate and railway indexes 5
  • Other Australian records 5
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Sophia Gerdes

    Arrived in Queensland in 1872 aboard the Indus, aged 15.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Reinhard Georg W. Gerdes

    Bricklayer of Vermont S, Victoria; died 1987.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Freda M. Gerdes

    Of Sydney, New South Wales; died 1922.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)

Showing 3 of 27 records for Gerdes in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

France5 records

5 records of the Gerdes name in France France's national death register, 1970–2001
  1. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Wilhelm August Gerdes

    Born 1914 in Germany; died 1995 in Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  2. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Andre Richard Gerdes

    Born 1927 in Kanfen (Moselle); died 1999 in Vimoutiers (Orne).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)
  3. A page of the death register of Nice, 1930
    Example: French death register, 1930
    Death record Suzanne Gerdes

    Born 1915 in Germany; died 2000 in Thionville (Moselle).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 3 of 5 records for Gerdes in France.

Counts: Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Death register of Nice, 1930, Archives départementales des Alpes-Maritimes (public domain).

Canada1 record

1 record of the Gerdes name in Canada City of Winnipeg cemetery records
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Benjamin Gerdes

    Died 1966; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

    City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg.

Counts: City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

New Zealand1 record

1 record of the Gerdes name in New Zealand Thames-Coromandel District cemetery records
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Rickleff Ferdinand Gerdes

    Buried in 1902 at Buffalo Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 75.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Gerdes name in the United Kingdom War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead
  1. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record S. Gerdes

    Royal Army Medical Corps. Listed among the dead in the War Office casualty list of 1918.

    National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain)

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Gerdes.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Gerdes 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 the Gerdes volume
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