The Gideon surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,287 people carried this name — #7,744 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 69,000 people counted. That is up 8% from 3,956 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Gideon surname

An English surname originating as a patronymic.

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

As an English and Welsh surname

Bardsley classes it as a baptismal name, from a given name: ‘the son of Gideon’.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 316 · public domain.

In the Nordic population registers

21 people named Gideon is counted in Sweden.

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

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 21

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

Gideon in American newspapers,
1887–1895.

Newspaper page from The Universalist carrying the name Gideon
The Universalist 1895-10-05
Newspaper page from The News Boy carrying the name Gideon
The News Boy 1895-06-29
Newspaper page from San Antonio Daily Light carrying the name Gideon
San Antonio Daily Light 1887-07-26

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 144,213 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Gideon in Australian newspapers,
1830s–1990s.

5,791 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Gideon. The most, 1,008, date from the 1860s. Weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, it stands out most in Victoria, at 1.6 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

Victoria 2,338
New South Wales 1,899
Queensland 590
South Australia 386
Tasmania 265
Western Australia 179
ACT (Canberra) 51

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

Who carried it

People named Gideon,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Sampson Gideon
    Sampson Gideon 1699–1762 · banker
  • Selena Childers
    Selena Childers 1772–
  • Charlotte Elizabeth Gideon 1768–1820
  • Rebecca Maryanne Minchin 1824–
  • Emilie Gideon 1870–1943
  • Rosa Gideon 1871–1940

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Gideon,
in the records of 6 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 States296 records

296 records of the Gideon name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 129
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 57
  • Other U.S. records 110
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Richard Edward Gideon

    Born 1948; from Valley Stream, New York. U.S. Army, personnel specialist; killed in action 1968 in Kontum, South Vietnam. Buried at Long Island National Cemetery, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record William R. Gideon

    Born 1900 in Missouri. Enlisted 1942 at Jefferson Barracks; construction worker. U.S. Army veteran of World War II; died 1958, buried at Memorial Park Cemetery, Saint Louis, Missouri.

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

    Arrived at New York in 1885 aboard the City of Berlin from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 21; servant. From Hamburg, Germany; bound for New York.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)

Showing 3 of 296 records for Gideon in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · 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, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain); U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain).

Netherlands112 records

112 records of the Gideon name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 106
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 4
  • Dutch population registers 2
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Geertje Gideon

    Married in 1818 in Middelharnis. Died 1872 in Middelharnis.

    Open Archives, Streekarchief Goeree-Overflakkee (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Simon Gideon

    Born 1871 in Stellendam. Died 1872 in Stellendam.

    Open Archives, Streekarchief Goeree-Overflakkee (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Dirk Gideon

    Buried in 1779 in Leeuwarden.

    Open Archives, AlleFriezen (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 112 records for Gideon 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); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

Australia28 records

28 records of the Gideon name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 17
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 6
  • Other Australian records 5
  1. An 1829 etching of convicts being rowed out to the prison ship York in Portsmouth Harbour
    Pictured: convicts going on board a prison ship, 1829
    Transportation record Jonas Gideon

    Transported to New South Wales aboard the Surry, arriving 1834; certificate of freedom 1841.

    Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Rebecca Gideon

    Arrived in Queensland in 1853 aboard the Parsee, aged 22.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Marcus George Gideon

    Labourer of Keysborough, Victoria; died 1988.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 28 records for Gideon 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) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Prison-ship in Portsmouth Harbour, with the convicts going on board, etching by Edward William Cooke, 1829, Royal Museums Greenwich (public domain); 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).

Germany21 records

21 records of the Gideon name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Hermann Gideon

    From Horb a. N. Reported wounded in the Württemberg casualty list of 31 August 1916 (Field Artillery Regiment No. 116).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  2. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Heinrich Gideon

    From Mühlengeez, Güstrow. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 9 September 1915 (Fusilier Regiment No. 37).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)
  3. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Wilhelm Gideon

    From Osternburg, Oldenburg. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 7 November 1918.

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 3 of 21 records for Gideon in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (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).

Canada19 records

19 records of the Gideon name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 17
  • City of Calgary cemetery records 2
  1. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Clarence E. Gideon

    Buried in 1940 at Burnsland Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  2. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Charles Henry Gideon

    Died 1936 in Liverpool, Queens, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Catherine Gideon

    Married 1886 in Queens, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 19 records for Gideon in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

United Kingdom1 record

1 record of the Gideon 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 J. Gideon

    Rifle Brigade. 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 Gideon.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Gideon 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.

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