2000
#4,626
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,010
First available Census row
Per 100,000 2.60
Rare Last name
Angell
A surname of English origin referring to a messenger or a person with angelic qualities.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 7,850 Americans carry the last name Angell. That puts it at #4,970 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 2.29 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 43,663 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Angell 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Angell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
7.8K
1 in 43,663
Census rank
#4,970
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
2.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
6.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 6,846 bearers of the surname Angell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 2.29 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 4970th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Angell, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Angell
The surname ANGELL is of English origin, derived from the Old English word "Engel" meaning "angel." It is believed to have originated as a nickname for someone with an angelic or gentle disposition or appearance.
The name can be traced back to the 13th century in various areas of England, particularly in the counties of Yorkshire, Lincolnshire, and Norfolk. It was often spelled as "Angill" or "Aungell" in early records.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273, which mentions a Johannes Aungel in Lincolnshire. The Subsidy Rolls of Staffordshire from 1327 also list a Robert Aungel.
In the 14th century, the ANGELL name appeared in the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in Yorkshire, where a John Angell was listed as a tenant in 1348. The name was also recorded in the Poll Tax returns of 1379 in Norfolk, with an entry for a William Angell.
During the 15th century, the surname was sometimes associated with place names, such as Angell's Green in Berkshire and Angell Town in Hampshire. This suggests that some ANGELL families may have derived their name from these locations.
Notable individuals with the surname ANGELL include:
1. Thomas Angell (c. 1619-1694), one of the founders of Providence, Rhode Island, and a prominent figure in the early settlement of the colony.
2. Oliver Angell (1658-1732), an English mathematician and astronomer who made significant contributions to the calculation of planetary orbits.
3. Joseph Kinnicut Angell (1794-1857), an American lawyer and politician who served as a member of the Rhode Island General Assembly and as the Chief Justice of the Rhode Island Supreme Court.
4. James Burrill Angell (1829-1916), an American educator and diplomat who served as the president of the University of Michigan and as the United States Minister to China.
5. Norman Angell (1872-1967), a British writer and politician who received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1933 for his influential book "The Great Illusion," which argued against the economic benefits of war.
The ANGELL surname has a rich history and can be traced back to the Middle Ages in various regions of England, where it was likely used as a nickname before becoming a hereditary surname.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Angell
Among Census respondents with the surname Angell, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Angell 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 Angell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White90.6% · 6,202
- Hispanic or Latino4.1% · 281
- Two or more races3.1% · 214
- Black or African American1.1% · 72
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 56
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 21
Timeline
Historical Census data for Angell
Angell 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
#4,593
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 7,725
+715 bearers (+10.2%)
Per 100,000 2.62
Rank movement Up 33 places
2020
#4,970
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 6,846
-879 bearers (-11.4%)
Per 100,000 2.29
Rank movement Down 377 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #4,626 | 7,010 | 2.60 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #4,593 | 7,725 | 2.62 | +715 bearers (+10.2%) | Up 33 places |
| 2020 | #4,970 | 6,846 | 2.29 | -879 bearers (-11.4%) | Down 377 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 Angell 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 | #4,593 | #4,970 | -8.2% |
| Count | 7,725 | 6,846 | -11.4% |
| Per 100K | 2.62 | 2.29 | -12.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Angell bearers went from 7,725 to 6,846 (-11.4% change). The surname moved down 377 positions in the national ranking, going from #4,593 to #4,970.
FAQ
Angell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Angell?
Name Census estimates that about 7,850 living Americans carry the surname Angell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 43,663 residents.
How common is Angell?
Angell ranks #4,970 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 2.29 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 6,846 people with the surname Angell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (7,850), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 2.29 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 2.29 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Angell.
Has Angell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Angell went from 7,725 recorded bearers to 6,846. That is a decrease of 879 (-11.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #4,593 to #4,970.
What does the Census say about the background of Angell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Angell, the largest self-reported group is White at 90.6%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (4.1%) and Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Angell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 90.6% (6,202 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Angell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (90.6%), Hispanic (4.1%), Two or More Races (3.1%). 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 Angell (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 Angell mean?
A surname of English origin referring to a messenger or a person with angelic qualities. 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 Angell (2.29 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 have the last name Angell?
Want to know how many people have the surname Angell? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.