The Good surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 35,446 people carried this name — #981 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 8,320 people counted. That is up 3% from 34,430 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Good surname

As an English surname, from the adjective good.

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Good» (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 nickname: ‘the good’ — the first of the origins he gives.

An early record he cites: Richard le Gode, Somerset, 1327–28 (1 Edward III) — Kirby's Quest (Somerset).

His entry covers Good and Goode.

From Charles W. Bardsley, A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with Special American Instances (London: Henry Frowde, 1901), p. 326 · public domain.

In Switzerland’s population statistics

1,662 people named Good live in Switzerland.

They live in 22 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in St. Gallen.

Where it concentrates, on the map

Where they live today

St. Gallen 862
Zurich 303
Graubünden 84
Aargau 81
Thurgau 65
Lucerne 45
Bern 26
Schwyz 25

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 Ireland’s birth registers, 1890

Ireland registered 19 births for the Good name in 1890.

They were registered in all four provinces, most of all in Munster. By the Registrar-General’s own method — births multiplied by 44.38 — that is about 800 people bearing the name in Ireland at the time. 3 of them were indexed under other spellings of the name. The Registrar-General’s note on the name: “11 in Cork.”

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

Where they were born, 1890

Munster 12
Connacht 3
Ulster 3
Leinster 1

Registrar-General for Ireland, «Special Report on Surnames in Ireland» (R. E. Matheson, 1894), births index of 1890 — public domain.

In Argentina’s national register

At least 64 people named Good 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 Córdoba.

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

Where they live today

Córdoba 39
Buenos Aires Province 25

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

In France’s civil register

France’s register of deaths holds 21 people named Good.

9 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 6 départements, most often Sarthe.

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

Where they were born

Born outside France 9
Sarthe 4
Deux-Sèvres 3
Ain 2
Finistère 1
Indre-et-Loire 1
Pyrénées-Atlantiques 1

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

In the Nordic population registers

276 people named Good is counted in Sweden.

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

Counted, by country

Sweden (2022) 276

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 Scotland’s registers today

Good was recorded 13 times in Scotland’s registers of births, marriages and deaths in 2025.

That made it the 1564th most common name in those registers, shared with others on the same count. In 1975, the first year of the series, the count was 19. Each birth counts the child’s surname, each marriage both partners’ and each death the surname of the person who died — a yearly count of registrations, not of the people who live in Scotland.

National Records of Scotland, «Most Common Surnames, 2025» (published 26 May 2026): every surname recorded 10 or more times in the 2025 registers, and the series from 1975 · different spellings are counted separately — © Crown copyright 2026. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

131 families named Good, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 807 people lived in those households, 6.2 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 2 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

Pennsylvania 52
Virginia 40
North Carolina 17
South Carolina 11
Maryland 10
New York 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 242 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Good in American newspapers,
1909–1919.

Newspaper page from The Daily Missoulian carrying the name Good
The Daily Missoulian 1913-05-13
Newspaper page from The Searchlight carrying the name Good
The Searchlight 1909-09-17
Newspaper page from Daily Kennebec Journal carrying the name Good
Daily Kennebec Journal 1919-04-14

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 19,264 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Good in Australian newspapers,
1810s–2010s.

145,559 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Good. The most, 26,441, date from the 1910s. 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 South Australia, at 1.4 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 40,375
Victoria 36,547
South Australia 24,324
Queensland 20,971
Western Australia 12,964
Tasmania 8,963
ACT (Canberra) 766
Northern Territory 192

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

Who carried it

People named Good,
with a public archive behind them.

  • John Good
    John Good d. 1941 · politician
  • Magnus the Good
    Magnus the Good 1024–1047 · monarch
  • Peter Good d. 1803 · botanist
  • Good, Peter P. 1789? d. 1875 · author
  • Peter Good d. 1803 · gardener
  • Frances Ann Good d. 1948

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 Good,
in the records of 9 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 States2,966 records

2,966 records of the Good name in the United States
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 1,206
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 450
  • Other U.S. records 1,310
  1. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Kenneth Newlon Good

    Born 1930; from San Marino, California. U.S. Army, infantry unit commander; killed in action 1963 in South Vietnam. Buried at National Memorial Cemetery of the Pacific, Honolulu, Hawaii.

    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 Elizabeth S. Good

    Born 1904 in Rhode Island. Enlisted 1943 in the Women's Army Corps at Salt Lake City, Utah; file clerk. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1993, buried at Massachusetts National Cemetery, Massachusetts.

    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 Farrant Good

    Arrived at New York in 1892 aboard the Teutonic from Liverpool and Queenstown, aged 34; engineer. From London, England; bound for New York.

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

Showing 3 of 2,966 records for Good in the United States.

Counts: U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. National Archives, Famine Irish Passenger Records (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain) · Sacramento County, Historic Burials (CC BY 4.0) · New York State, Open NY (police and firefighter memorial rolls). 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).

Australia1,453 records

1,453 records of the Good name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 740
  • Tasmanian Names Index 352
  • Other Australian records 361
  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 John Good

    Transported to Van Diemen's Land aboard the Orator, sailing from Dublin in 1843. Native of Wexford. Applied for permission to marry in Van Diemen's Land in 1847.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Peter Britton Good

    Died 1885 in Franklin, Tasmania, aged 74. Will registered in Tasmania in 1885.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Gordon Good

    Died 1929 in Derby, Tasmania. Will registered in Tasmania in 1929.

    Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 1,453 records for Good in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Libraries Tasmania, Tasmanian Names Index (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0) · Museums of History NSW – State Archives Collection (CC BY) · State Library of Western Australia (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). 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); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain).

Canada194 records

194 records of the Good name in Canada
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 74
  • Canadian Virtual War Memorial 26
  • Other Canadian records 94
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Henry Good

    Came to Ontario in 1872 aboard the St. Andrew, landing at Quebec, bound for Collingwood, Ontario; Irish.

    Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Fyson Reginald Good

    Buried in 1992 at Queen's Park Cemetery, Calgary, Alberta, aged 62.

    City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary.
  3. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Ida Good

    Died 1912; buried at Brookside Cemetery, Winnipeg, Manitoba.

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

Showing 3 of 194 records for Good in Canada.

Counts: Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. · Veterans Affairs Canada. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Canada. · Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence · City of Vancouver. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Vancouver. · City of Calgary. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – City of Calgary. · City of Winnipeg. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Winnipeg. · Archives of Ontario. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Ontario. · City of Niagara Falls. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence – Niagara Falls. · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0).

Netherlands149 records

149 records of the Good name in the Netherlands
  • Dutch civil registers (births, marriages, deaths) 82
  • Dutch population registers 65
  • Dutch church registers before 1811 2
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Franciscus Hubertus Judocus Good

    Born 1895 in Middelburg. Married in 1929 in Middelburg. Died 1940 in Aan boord stoomschip Towa, aged 45.

    Open Archives, Zeeuws Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Cornelia Maria Allegonda Good

    Born 1864 in Bergen op Zoom. Married in 1883 in Alkmaar. Died 1886 in Alkmaar, aged 21.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Noord-Hollands Archief (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Wilhelmus Hendrikus Good

    Born 1833 in Boxtel. Died 1913 in Renkum, aged 79.

    Open Archives, Brabants Historisch Informatie Centrum (CC BY 4.0); Open Archives, Gelders Archief (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 149 records for Good 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).

United Kingdom39 records

39 records of the Good name in the United Kingdom
  • War Office casualty lists, 1917–1919, among the dead 20
  • Stirling Council burial records 10
  • Other British records 9
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record John R. Good

    Buried in 1940 at Ballengeich Cemetery, Stirling, Scotland, aged 69.

    Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Martha Good

    Buried in 1804 at St James's burial ground, Euston, London, aged 50.

    MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.
  3. A First World War roll of honour of the staff of C. & E. Morton Ltd
    Example: roll of honour, 1914–1919
    War record William Knight Good

    Died 1918. Named in the National Bank of Scotland Limited roll of honour (1921).

    National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain)

Showing 3 of 39 records for Good in the United Kingdom.

Counts: National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain) · Stirling Council. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · MOLA and HS2, St James's burial ground data. Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. · National Library of Scotland, Rolls of Honour (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0); C. & E. Morton Ltd roll of honour, 1914–1919, photo by Adrian S Pye via Geograph (CC BY-SA 2.0).

New Zealand34 records

34 records of the Good name in New Zealand
  • Christchurch City cemetery records 27
  • Marlborough District cemetery records 4
  • Other New Zealand records 3
  1. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Pearl Enid Good

    Died 1964, aged 46; buried at Bromley Cemetery, Christchurch, Canterbury.

    Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Stanley Augustus Good

    Died 1986, aged 90; buried at Fairhall Cemetery, Marlborough.

    Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the burial register of Newtown, Wales, 1858
    Example: burial register, 1858
    Burial record Arthur Henry Clayton Good

    Buried in 1954 at Totara Memorial Park Cemetery, Thames-Coromandel District, Waikato, aged 72.

    Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 34 records for Good in New Zealand.

Counts: Christchurch City Council (CC BY 4.0) · Marlborough District Council (CC BY 4.0) · Thames-Coromandel District Council (CC BY 4.0) · National Library of Scotland, War Office Weekly Casualty Lists (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Burial register of Newtown, Montgomeryshire, 1858, National Library of Wales (CC0).

France7 records

7 records of the Good 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 Helene Louise Good

    Born 1899 in Saint-Calais (Sarthe); died 1981 in Sainte-Foy-la-Grande (Gironde).

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

    Born 1919 in Belgium; died 1991 in La Teste (Gironde).

    Insee, Fichier des personnes décédées (Licence Ouverte)

Showing 2 of 7 records for Good 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).

Switzerland4 records

4 records of the Good name in Switzerland Zürich marriage records, 16th–18th centuries
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Anna Dorothea Good

    Married in 1738 in Zollikon, canton of Zürich.

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Franz Good

    Married in 1713 in St. Peter, canton of Zürich.

    Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 2 of 4 records for Good in Switzerland.

Counts: Staatsarchiv des Kantons Zürich, Zürcher Ehedaten (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Germany3 records

3 records of the Good 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 Niels Good

    From Stevning, Sonderburg. Reported missing in the Prussian casualty list of 19 September 1916 (Reserve Infantry Regiment No. 265).

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

Showing 1 of 3 records for Good 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).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Good.

When the index is not enough

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

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