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

Adelung, 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 Adelung surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Adelung in America

Adelung is the 154907th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Adelung surname appeared 105 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 Adelung.

The history of the last name Adelung

The surname ADELUNG originated in Germany in the 16th century. It is derived from the Old German words "adal" meaning noble and "ung" meaning descendant or place of origin. This suggests the name likely referred to someone of noble descent or from a location associated with nobility.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the name ADELUNG appears in a manuscript from the town of Hamelin in Lower Saxony, dated 1572. It refers to a merchant named Heinrich Adelung who traded goods along the Weser River.

In the 17th century, the name appears in records from the city of Leipzig, with a Johannes Adelung born in 1634. He was a professor of theology at the University of Leipzig and published several notable works on Christian ethics.

The ADELUNG name gained wider prominence in the late 18th century with Johann Christoph Adelung (1732-1806), a renowned German grammarian and philologist. He authored influential works on the German language including the first comprehensive dictionary, and is considered a pioneer of modern linguistic study.

Another prominent bearer was Christian Friedrich Adelung (1782-1843), a German historical writer and bibliographer. He published extensively on the history of German literature and culture.

In the 19th century, Karl Franz Adelung (1809-1888) was a German jurist and legal scholar who made important contributions to the field of international law and treaties.

While concentrated in Germany, the ADELUNG name also spread to other parts of Europe over the centuries, with families found in Switzerland, Austria, and parts of Eastern Europe.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Adelung

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

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 Adelung 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.

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 Adelung was researched and written by our team of onomatology and genealogy experts.

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

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