Goodall
A surname most likely built from the phrase “good hall,” originally referring to someone who lived by or worked at a notable hall or house.
The #6,526 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 59,454 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Goodall is generally understood as a habitational or topographic surname formed from Middle English good and hall, meaning “good hall” or “pleasant/better house.” In origin it would have described someone associated with a hall, manor, or distinguished dwelling. Because medieval spellings were fluid, the name could sometimes have been influenced by similar-sounding forms, but the hall-based explanation is the standard one.
History
The surname is found in England by the late medieval period and later appears widely in parish and civil records. It is especially established in northern and midland English records, and it has also traveled to Scotland, North America, and other English-speaking regions through migration. The name remains moderately uncommon but well recognized.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same surname family has produced both ordinary parish records and notable scholars, including Walter Goodall, an 18th-century Scottish antiquary.
From the historical record
“Eutacr Selede, co. Camb^ 1371. A, 1773. Uarried-WilliuD Goodall and Mar> Selfe : St. Gen. Han. Sq. i. 331. CO. Norf. ! FF. viii. 109. London. 3, 9, 3 I BoMon (U.S.), o, 1, 1.”
— A Dictionary of English and Welsh Surnames, with special American instancesNotable people named Goodall
- Jane Goodall (1934–2025)
Sourced from Wikidata; linked to their Wikipedia page.