Find out how popular the last name Adels is in the United States and learn more about the meaning, history, and race and ethnic origin of people in America who are named Adels.

Adels, like all of the last names we have data for, is identified by the U.S. Census Bureau as a surname which has more than 100 occurrences in the United States in the Decennial Census survey. The most recent statistics we have for the Adels surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Adels in America

Adels is the 157234th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Adels surname appeared 103 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Adels.

We can also compare 2010 data for Adels to data from the previous census in 2000. The table below contains all of the statistics for both years in a side-by-side comparison.

The history of the last name Adels

The surname ADELS is of German origin, first appearing in records from the late 15th century. It is believed to have derived from the Old German word "adel", meaning "noble" or "aristocratic". This suggests that the name may have originally been given to someone of noble or high-born status.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ADELS can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of medieval documents from the region of Saxony. In this manuscript, dated around 1480, there is a reference to a person named "Hans Adels" living in the town of Meissen.

Another early mention of the name appears in the Liber Beneficiorum, a register of ecclesiastical appointments and benefices, from the city of Cologne in 1512. Here, a certain "Peter Adels" is listed as a canon of the Cathedral Chapter.

In the 16th century, the name ADELS was also found in parts of what is now Austria. A notable figure was Matthias Adels, a merchant from Vienna who was born in 1548 and died in 1618. He was a prominent member of the city's guild of traders and is recorded as having made significant contributions to the local economy.

Moving into the 17th century, there was a Johannes Adels, a Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Wittenberg, who lived from 1585 to 1667. His works on theology and biblical exegesis were widely read and influential during that period.

In more recent times, one of the most well-known bearers of the ADELS surname was Wilhelm Adels, a German industrialist and entrepreneur who was born in 1848 and died in 1920. He founded the Adels Metal Works, a successful manufacturing company that played a key role in the industrialization of Germany in the late 19th century.

While the name ADELS has its roots in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond. However, its origins can be traced back to the medieval period and the concept of nobility and aristocracy in Germanic societies.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Adels

We also have some data on the ancestry of people with the surname Adels.

The below race categories are the modified race categories used in the Census Bureau's population estimates program. All people were categorized into six mutually exclusive racial and Hispanic origin groups:

1. White only
2. Black only
3. American Indian and Alaskan Native only
4. Asian and Pacific Islander only
5. Hispanic
6. Two or More Races

For the most recent 2010 census data, the race/ethnic origin breakdown for Adels was:

Note: Any fields showing (S) means the data was suppressed for privacy so that the data does not in any way identify any specific individuals.

Since we have data from the previous census in 2000, we can also compare the values to see how the popularity of Adels has changed in the 10 years between the two census surveys.

Data source

The last name data and ethnic breakdown of last names is sourced directly from the Decennial Census survey, conducted every 10 years by the United States Census Bureau.

The history and meaning of the name Adels was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Adels, please contact us.

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