NameCensus.

UK surname

Gossling

A German surname derived from the name "Gossel", meaning a young gosling or a foolish person.

In the 1881 census there were 101 people recorded with the Gossling surname, ranking it #19,636 among surnames in the records. By 2016, the modern count was 128, ranked #26,401, down from #19,636 in 1881.

The strongest historical links point to Poole St James, Pinchbeck, Cowbit and Wisbech St Peter. In the modern distribution records, the strongest local clusters include Poole, New Forest and Amber Valley.

Across the surname records, the highest recorded count for Gossling is 170 in 1901. Compared with 1881, the name has grown by 26.7%.

1881 census count

101

Ranked #19,636

Modern count

128

2016, ranked #26,401

Peak year

1901

170 bearers

Map years

9

1851 to 2016

Key insights

  • Gossling had 101 recorded bearers in 1881, making it the #19,636 surname in that year.
  • The latest modern count shown here is 128 in 2016, ranked #26,401.
  • Within the historical census years, the highest count was 170 in 1901.
  • The contemporary neighbourhood profile most associated with the surname is Ageing Communities.

Gossling surname distribution map

The map shows where the Gossling surname is concentrated in each census or modern distribution year. Darker areas mean a stronger local concentration.

Distribution map

Gossling surname density by area, 1881 census.

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Lower densityMedium densityHigh density

Timeline

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Gossling over time

The table below tracks recorded surname counts and rank from the 19th-century census years through the modern adult-register period.

Year Period Count Rank
1851 historical 151 #12,840
1861 historical 108 #19,856
1881 historical 101 #19,636
1891 historical 143 #18,920
1901 historical 170 #16,762
1911 historical 151 #17,797
1997 modern 134 #22,608
1998 modern 138 #22,814
1999 modern 130 #23,805
2000 modern 132 #23,562
2001 modern 130 #23,457
2002 modern 143 #22,595
2003 modern 130 #23,672
2004 modern 122 #24,812
2005 modern 118 #25,301
2006 modern 115 #25,969
2007 modern 105 #27,868
2008 modern 113 #26,920
2009 modern 128 #25,427
2010 modern 138 #24,801
2011 modern 129 #25,673
2012 modern 121 #26,829
2013 modern 123 #26,974
2014 modern 127 #26,634
2015 modern 127 #26,494
2016 modern 128 #26,401

Geography

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Where Gosslings are most common

Historical parish links are strongest around Poole St James, Pinchbeck, Cowbit, Wisbech St Peter, Wimborne Minster, Gussage All Saints, Chalbury and London parishes. These are the places where the surname stands out most clearly in the older records.

The modern local-area list points to Poole, New Forest and Amber Valley. Treat these as concentration signals, not proof that every family line began there.

Some modern areas include a three-digit suffix, such as Leeds 110. The suffix is a small-area code, so it stays in the table while the prose uses the plain place name.

Top historical parishes

Rank Parish Area
1 Poole St James Dorset
2 Pinchbeck, Cowbit Lincolnshire
3 Wisbech St Peter Cambridgeshire
4 Wimborne Minster, Gussage All Saints, Chalbury Dorset
5 London parishes London 2

Top modern areas

Rank Area District
1 Poole 016 Poole
2 Poole 015 Poole
3 New Forest 023 New Forest
4 Amber Valley 016 Amber Valley
5 Poole 005 Poole

Forenames

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First names often paired with Gossling

These lists show first names that appear often with the Gossling surname in historical and recent records.

Modern profile

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Neighbourhood profile for Gossling

Modern surname records can be compared with neighbourhood classifications. For Gossling, this points to the kinds of places where the surname is most concentrated today.

These neighbourhood labels describe areas, not individual people. They are useful because surnames often cluster through family history, migration, housing patterns and local work. A surname can be strongest in one type of neighbourhood even when people with that name live across the country.

The UK classification gives the national picture. The London classification is more specific to the capital, where housing, age profile, tenure and population mix can look quite different from the rest of the UK.

UK neighbourhood type

UK Output Area Classification

Supergroup

Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities

Group

Ageing Communities

Nationally, the Gossling surname is most associated with neighbourhoods classed as Ageing Communities, within Suburbanites and Peri-Urbanities. This does not mean every Gossling household fits that profile, but it gives a useful signal about where the modern surname distribution is strongest.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Many residents are of normal retirement age or above and live in communal establishments, and there are few dependent children. The dominant property type is a mix of retirement flats and detached houses. Those in work are likely to be employed in managerial and professional occupations, and many residents are educated to degree level. Levels of owner occupation are high, but the private rental sector is also present. Rural locations predominate.

Wider pattern

Pervasive throughout the UK, members of this Supergroup typically own (or are buying) their detached, semi-detached or terraced homes. They are also typically educated to A Level/Highers or degree level and work in skilled or professional occupations. Typically born in the UK, some families have children, although the median adult age is above 45 and some property has become under-occupied after children have left home. This Supergroup is pervasive not only in suburban locations, but also in neighbourhoods at or beyond the edge of cities that adjoin rural parts of the country.

London neighbourhood type

London Output Area Classification

Supergroup

The Greater London Mix

Group

Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers

Within London, Gossling is most associated with areas classed as Social Rented Sector Professional Support Workers, part of The Greater London Mix. This gives the surname a London-specific profile rather than forcing the capital into the same pattern as the rest of the country.

Read profile summary

Group profile

Mainly located in Inner London, these neighbourhoods retain a diverse employment structure, with some concentration in associated professional and technical occupations rather than skilled trades or construction. Social renting is more common and levels of homeownership are low. Many residents identify as Black. There is a lower than average rate of marriage or civil partnership, few that are very old (85 or over) and higher than average incidence of disability.

Wider London pattern

A Supergroup embodying London's diversity in many respects, apart from low numbers of residents identifying as of Bangladeshi, Indian, Pakistani or Other (non-Chinese) Asian ethnicity. There is lower than average prevalence of families with dependent children, while there are above average occurrences of never-married individuals and single-person households. The age distribution is skewed towards younger, single residents and couples without children, with many individuals identifying as of mixed or multiple ethnicity. Social rented or private rented housing is slightly more prevalent than average, and many residents live in flats. Individuals typically work in professional and associated roles in public administration, education or health rather than in elementary occupations in agriculture, energy, water, construction or manufacturing. Incidence of students is slightly below average. Individuals declaring no religion are more prevalent than average and non-use of English at home is below average.

Healthy neighbourhoods

Access to healthy assets and hazards

Gossling is most concentrated in decile 2 for access to healthy assets and hazards. This places the surname towards the less healthy end of the index.

Lower deciles point towards weaker access to healthy assets or stronger exposure to local hazards. Higher deciles point towards stronger access and fewer hazards.

2
Lower access Higher access

Neighbourhood deprivation

Index of Multiple Deprivation

Gossling falls in decile 8 for neighbourhood deprivation. This puts the surname towards the less deprived end of the index.

Decile 1 represents the more deprived end of the scale. Decile 10 represents the less deprived end.

8
More deprived Less deprived

Broadband speed

Fixed broadband download speed

The modern neighbourhood pattern for Gossling is most associated with a typical fixed broadband download band of 50-60 mbit/s.

The scale below places that band in context, from slower local download bands through to faster ones.

8
Slower band Faster band

Area snapshot

Ethnic group estimate

Most common ethnic group estimate
White - British

This describes the area pattern most associated with Gossling, not the ethnicity of every person with the surname.

Meaning and origin of Gossling

The surname Gossling is believed to have originated in the German region of Lower Saxony during the late medieval period. It is thought to be derived from the Old German word "gos," meaning a young goose or gosling, and may have been an occupational surname given to someone who raised or tended to geese.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Bremisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of historical documents from the city of Bremen, dating back to 1350, which mentions a certain "Hinrich Gosseling." This suggests that the name was present in the area during the 14th century.

In the 16th century, the name appears in various records from the Duchy of Brunswick-Lüneburg, where spellings such as "Gosselinck" and "Gosselink" were common. This region was historically known for its agricultural activities, lending further credence to the theory of the name's occupational origins.

During the 17th century, the Gossling surname began to spread beyond Lower Saxony, with records showing individuals bearing the name in other parts of Germany, as well as in neighboring countries like the Netherlands and Denmark. One notable figure from this period was Hans Gossling (1596-1668), a German artist and engraver from Lübeck.

As the name spread, variations in spelling emerged, with forms like "Gösling," "Goessling," and "Gösselchen" appearing in different regions. In the 18th century, the Gossling surname can be found in records from the Prussian province of Pomerania, where a family of that name held landholdings in the town of Treptow an der Rega.

Notable individuals with the surname Gossling include Johann Friedrich Gottlieb Gossling (1738-1790), a German theologian and writer, as well as Carl Ludwig Gossling (1784-1865), a Prussian lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Prussian National Assembly in the revolutionary year of 1848.

In the 19th century, the Gossling name continued to be present across various parts of Germany, with individuals such as Gustav Adolph Gossling (1806-1876), a German botanist and horticulturist, and Ernst Gossling (1846-1923), a German architect and professor who designed several notable buildings in Berlin.

While the surname Gossling is still found in Germany and other parts of Europe today, its origins can be traced back to the medieval period in Lower Saxony, where it likely began as an occupational name associated with the raising of geese.

Sourced from namecensus.com.

1881 census detail

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Gossling families in the 1881 census

These tables use 1881 census entries for people recorded with the Gossling surname. Use the location tables for concentration, then the name and occupation tables for the people behind the surname.

Top counties

Total is the county count. Frequency and index adjust for local population size, so they are better concentration signals. Dorset leads with 17 Gosslings recorded in 1881 and an index of 27.66x.

County Total Index
Dorset 17 27.66x
Surrey 13 2.85x
Hampshire 10 5.21x
Essex 8 4.33x
Cambridgeshire 7 11.80x
Gloucestershire 7 3.81x
Cheshire 6 2.90x
Leicestershire 5 4.82x
Fife 4 7.22x
Lincolnshire 4 2.67x
Middlesex 3 0.32x
Merionethshire 2 11.68x
Nottinghamshire 2 1.58x
Yorkshire 2 0.22x
Derbyshire 1 0.68x
Durham 1 0.36x
Kent 1 0.31x
Somerset 1 0.66x
Staffordshire 1 0.32x
Sussex 1 0.63x

Top districts and towns

Districts give a more local view than counties. Total shows raw records, while frequency and index show local concentration. Battersea in Surrey leads with 11 Gosslings recorded in 1881 and an index of 31.93x.

Place Total Index
Battersea 11 31.93x
Christchurch 9 216.35x
Westbury On Trym 7 112.54x
Wimborne 7 945.95x
Wisbech St Peter 7 235.69x
Harwich St Nicholas 5 349.65x
Leicester St Margaret 5 19.75x
Sutton In Macclesfield 5 233.64x
Dysart 4 107.24x
Wimborne Minster 4 404.04x
Gussage All Sts 3 2307.69x
Boston 2 44.05x
Colchester St James 2 266.67x
Dolgelley 2 157.48x
Gussage St Michael 2 2500.00x
Kingston On Thames 2 18.25x
Snenton 2 40.32x
St George Martyr London 2 105.26x
Ardsley 1 93.46x
Bilston 1 16.31x
Bishopwearmouth 1 4.18x
Ecclesfield 1 14.71x
Ewhurst 1 285.71x
Friskney 1 208.33x
Kettleshulme 1 909.09x
Langford Budville 1 833.33x
Lymington 1 70.92x
Netherbury 1 196.08x
Normanton 1 80.65x
Pinchbeck 1 104.17x
Stoke Newington London 1 13.72x
West Ham 1 2.45x
Woolwich 1 8.47x

Top female names

These are the female first names most often recorded with the Gossling surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

Name Count
Mary 5
Eliza 4
Jane 4
Elizabeth 3
Sarah 3
Ada 2
Ellen 2
Emily 2
Harriett 2
Mabel 2
Adelaide 1
Ann 1
Anna 1
Betsy 1
Charlotte 1
Christiana 1
Edith 1
Emma 1
Ethel 1
Evelyn 1
Gertrude 1
Hariett 1
Harriet 1
Helen 1
Henrietta 1
Jessie 1
Lilian 1
Lottie 1
Louisa 1
Marianne 1
Milicent 1
Rebecca 1

Top male names

These are the male first names most often recorded with the Gossling surname in 1881. Names are not merged, so initials, variant spellings and transcription quirks can appear as separate rows.

FAQ

Gossling surname: questions and answers

How common was the Gossling surname in 1881?

In 1881, 101 people were recorded with the Gossling surname. That placed it at #19,636 in the surname rankings for that year.

How common is the Gossling surname today?

The latest modern count shown here is 128 in 2016. That gives Gossling a modern rank of #26,401.

What does the Gossling surname mean?

A German surname derived from the name "Gossel", meaning a young gosling or a foolish person.

What does the Gossling map show?

The map shows local surname concentration for the selected year. Darker areas have a stronger concentration of Gossling bearers relative to the surrounding population.

What records is this surname page based on?

The historical counts come from census surname records. The modern counts and neighbourhood summaries come from later surname distribution records. Counts are recorded bearers in those records, not a live estimate of everyone with the name today.