Irish and Scottish: variant of McGowan ‘son of the smith’ in which the Gaelic patronymic prefix Mac has been replaced by the English patronymic suffix -s.
Source: Dictionary of American Family Names 2nd edition, 2022
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Where is the Gowans family from?
You can see how Gowans families moved over time by selecting different census years. The Gowans family name was found in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Scotland between 1840 and 1920. The most Gowans families were found in and Scotland in 1841. In 1891 there were 76 Gowans families living in Northumberland. This was about 38% of all the recorded Gowans's in United Kingdom. Northumberland had the highest population of Gowans families in 1891.
Use census records and voter lists to see where families with the Gowans surname lived. Within census records, you can often find information like name of household members, ages, birthplaces, residences, and occupations.
In 1939, Rope Worker (underground) and Unpaid Domestic Duties were the top reported jobs for men and women in the United Kingdom named Gowans. 20% of Gowans men worked as a Rope Worker (underground) and 88% of Gowans women worked as an Unpaid Domestic Duties. Some less common occupations for Americans named Gowans were Fitter Chemical Works and Unpaid Household Duties. .
Between 1954 and 2004, in the United States, Gowans life expectancy was at its lowest point in 1960, and highest in 1967. The average life expectancy for Gowans in 1954 was 51, and 81 in 2004.