Ranzel
A French diminutive form of Ransom, possibly meaning "ransom" or "redemption".
Name Census estimates that about 6 living Americans carry the first name Ranzel. The name is used almost exclusively for boys. The average person named Ranzel today is around 27 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Ranzel births was 1999 (6 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Ranzel. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Fewer than 100 living Americans are believed to carry the name Ranzel. It is among the rarest names in the SSA records.
People living today
6
~ 1 in 57,125,723 Americans
Peak year
1999
6 babies that year
Average age
27
years old
1999 SSA rank
#9,612
Tracked since 1999
Popularity
Ranzel: popularity over time
Babies born per year
Decades
Ranzel by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Ranzel during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
| Decade | Male | Female | Total |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1990s | 6 | 0 | 6 |
Origin
Meaning and history of Ranzel
The name Ranzel is believed to have its roots in the ancient Germanic language, originating around the 5th century AD. It is thought to be derived from the Old High German word "ranzo," meaning "border" or "edge," and the suffix "-el," which was commonly used to form diminutive names.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Ranzel can be found in the Codex Sangallensis, a 9th-century manuscript from the Abbey of Saint Gall in modern-day Switzerland. In this document, a monk named Ranzel is mentioned as a scribe who contributed to the manuscript's creation.
During the Middle Ages, the name Ranzel gained popularity among the nobility and upper classes in various Germanic regions, particularly in what is now Germany and Austria. It was often associated with individuals who lived near or protected the borders of their respective territories.
In the 12th century, a nobleman named Ranzel von Hohenzollern is recorded as having played a significant role in the establishment of the Hohenzollern dynasty, which later ruled over Prussia and the German Empire. His exact birth and death dates are unknown, but he is believed to have lived during the mid-to-late 1100s.
Another notable figure with the name Ranzel was a 14th-century monk and theologian from the Cistercian Order, known as Ranzel of Heilbronn. He was born in the city of Heilbronn, now in Baden-Württemberg, Germany, around 1310 and died in 1378. Ranzel of Heilbronn was renowned for his scholarly works on theology and philosophy.
In the 16th century, a German artist named Ranzel Feuerbach gained recognition for his paintings and woodcuts. He was born in Nuremberg in 1512 and died in the same city in 1580. Feuerbach's works often depicted religious themes and were heavily influenced by the Renaissance style of his time.
Another notable figure named Ranzel was a 17th-century Prussian military commander, Ranzel von Derfflinger. Born in 1606 in Küstrin (present-day Poland), he played a significant role in the Thirty Years' War and later served as a Field Marshal under the Great Elector Frederick William of Brandenburg. Von Derfflinger died in 1695.
While the name Ranzel has ancient Germanic roots, it has remained relatively rare throughout history, with only a handful of notable individuals bearing this moniker. Its meaning and association with borders and edges have contributed to its unique and distinctive character.
People
Ranzel + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Ranzel as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Ranzel: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Ranzel?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 6 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Ranzel going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 57,125,723 US residents.
Is Ranzel a common name?
We classify Ranzel as "Very Rare". It ranks above 22.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 6 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Ranzel most popular?
The single biggest year for Ranzel was 1999, when 6 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Ranzel is about 27 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Ranzel in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Ranzel a male name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Ranzel in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Ranzel still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Ranzel in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Ranzel can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only covers names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files do not have a published Census demographic snapshot. In those cases, the page still shows the SSA trend, gender history, and state data.
How many people have the name Ranzel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.