2000
#43,629
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 466
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.17
Very Rare Last name
Adel
Noble or nobility, derived from the Germanic word "adal" meaning noble or aristocratic.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 962 Americans carry the last name Adel. That puts it at #29,905 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.28 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 356,293 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Adel surname. You will find the Census Bureau frequency data, a multi-census history view, an ancestry and ethnicity breakdown based on self-reported demographics, the name's meaning and origin where available, and answers to the most common questions people ask about this surname.
Bearers in the US
962
1 in 356,293
Census rank
#29,905
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
839
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 839 bearers of the surname Adel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.28 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 29905th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Adel, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (17.3%) and Two or More Races (6.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Adel
The surname Adel has its origins in Germany, dating back to the Middle Ages. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "adal," which means "noble" or "aristocratic." This suggests that the name was initially associated with families of noble or privileged status.
Adel is thought to have first emerged in the region of Saxony, one of the ancient duchies of Germany. Records from the 11th century mention individuals bearing variations of the name, such as Adeln, Adeler, and Adelmann, indicating its early presence in the area.
One of the earliest known references to the name Adel can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from the Duchy of Saxony. This manuscript, dating back to the 12th century, contains records of individuals with the surname Adel holding positions of importance within the local nobility.
In the 13th century, a knight named Heinrich von Adel is mentioned in the Annales Reinhardsbrunnenses, a chronicle of events from the Reinhardsbrunner Monastery in Thuringia, Germany. This suggests that the Adel family had established a presence in the region and held a respected status within the knightly class.
During the 14th century, the name Adel appears in various records from the cities of Lübeck and Hamburg, indicating its spread across northern Germany. One notable individual from this period was Johann Adel (c. 1310-1380), a wealthy merchant and landowner in the city of Lübeck.
In the 15th century, the Adel family gained prominence in the region of Silesia, now part of Poland. A notable figure was Hans von Adel (c. 1420-1488), a military commander who served under the Prussian Duke Friedrich I and played a pivotal role in the Thirteen Years' War against the Teutonic Knights.
Other notable individuals bearing the surname Adel include Kaspar Adel (1559-1635), a German jurist and legal scholar who served as a councillor to the Prince-Electors of Saxony, and Johann Christian Adel (1670-1742), a German theologian and philosopher who authored several works on ethics and natural law.
Throughout its history, the surname Adel has been associated with various place names and localities in Germany, including Adelsdorf, Adelshausen, and Adelsheim, further reflecting its noble origins and connections to landed estates and fiefdoms.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Adel
Among Census respondents with the surname Adel, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (17.3%) and Two or More Races (6.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Adel bearers described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given surname, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown for every Census year so the breakdown stays comparable over time. When the source file also includes raw headcounts, Name Census shows those alongside the percentages in the legend.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A person's surname does not determine their race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the Adel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White69.5% · 583
- Asian and Pacific Islander17.3% · 145
- Two or more races6.2% · 52
- Black or African American4.2% · 35
- Hispanic or Latino2.9% · 24
Timeline
Historical Census data for Adel
Adel appears in 3 published Census surname files: 2000, 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2010
#38,691
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 571
+105 bearers (+22.5%)
Per 100,000 0.19
Rank movement Up 4,938 places
2020
#29,905
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 839
+268 bearers (+46.9%)
Per 100,000 0.28
Rank movement Up 8,786 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #43,629 | 466 | 0.17 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #38,691 | 571 | 0.19 | +105 bearers (+22.5%) | Up 4,938 places |
| 2020 | #29,905 | 839 | 0.28 | +268 bearers (+46.9%) | Up 8,786 places |
For 2020, the Census Bureau published race and Hispanic-origin columns as counts rather than percentages. Name Census converts those counts back into shares so the ancestry section stays comparable with the older surname files.
Year on year
2010 vs 2020 Census
How has the Adel surname changed between Census years? The chart shows bearer count side by side, and the table compares rank, count, and frequency.
Census year comparison
20102020
| Metric | 2010 | 2020 | Change |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank | #38,691 | #29,905 | 22.7% |
| Count | 571 | 839 | 46.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.19 | 0.28 | 47.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Adel bearers went from 571 to 839 (+46.9% change). The surname moved up 8,786 positions in the national ranking, going from #38,691 to #29,905.
FAQ
Adel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Adel?
Name Census estimates that about 962 living Americans carry the surname Adel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 356,293 residents.
How common is Adel?
Adel ranks #29,905 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.28 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 839 people with the surname Adel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (962), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.28 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.28 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Adel.
Has Adel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Adel went from 571 recorded bearers to 839. That is an increase of 268 (+46.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #38,691 to #29,905.
What does the Census say about the background of Adel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Adel, the largest self-reported group is White at 69.5%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (17.3%) and Two or More Races (6.2%). These figures come from the 2020 Census Bureau surname tables, based on how respondents described their own race and ethnicity.
Which group reports this surname most often?
White is the largest self-reported group for the surname Adel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 69.5% (583 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Adel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (69.5%), Asian/Pacific Islander (17.3%), Two or More Races (6.2%). For 2020, the source file also published raw headcounts for each group, which is why this page can show both percentages and counts in the ancestry section.
Is this page using the latest Census data?
Yes. This page is using the latest surname file currently loaded on Name Census, which is 2020. The historical section above also keeps any older Census surname entries we have for Adel (2000, 2010, 2020).
Does the Census include every surname?
No. The Census Bureau only publishes surnames that appeared at least 100 times in a given decennial Census. That means very rare surnames are excluded entirely, and a surname can appear in one Census release but disappear from a later one if it falls below the reporting threshold.
Why don't the ancestry percentages always add up to exactly 100%?
There are two main reasons: rounding and suppression. The Census Bureau rounds published values, and it may suppress very small cells to protect privacy. For 2020, the Bureau also published raw group counts rather than direct percentages, so Name Census converts those counts back into shares for comparability across census years.
What does Adel mean?
Noble or nobility, derived from the Germanic word "adal" meaning noble or aristocratic. The fuller origin note on this page goes into more detail.
Where does the surname data come from?
All surname statistics on Name Census are drawn from the US Census Bureau's decennial surname frequency tables. These files list every surname that appeared 100 or more times in the 2020 Census, along with a count, a per-100,000 rate, and a self-reported demographic breakdown. You can read the full explanation on our methodology page.
How does Name Census estimate living bearers?
For surnames, Name Census does not age cohorts the way it does for first names. Instead, it takes the Census Bureau's published frequency for Adel (0.28 per 100,000) and applies that rate to the current U.S. resident population to estimate how many living Americans have the surname today.
How many people share the surname Adel?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.