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

Apostol, 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 Apostol surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Apostol in America

Apostol is the 18177th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Apostol surname appeared 1,531 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Apostol.

We can also compare 2010 data for Apostol 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 Apostol

The surname APOSTOL is of Greek origin and can be traced back to the Byzantine Empire, specifically the regions of Thrace, Macedonia, and parts of modern-day Greece and Turkey. It is derived from the Greek word "apostolos," meaning "messenger" or "envoy," which itself is rooted in the ancient Greek verb "apostellein," meaning "to send forth."

Early records suggest that the name APOSTOL was initially used as a descriptive term for individuals who served as messengers, couriers, or envoys in the Byzantine court or ecclesiastical settings. Over time, it became a hereditary surname, passed down through generations.

One of the earliest documented references to the name APOSTOL can be found in the Codex Theodosianus, a collection of ancient Roman laws compiled in the 5th century CE. This codex mentions an individual named "Apostolius" who served as a high-ranking official in the Eastern Roman Empire.

Another significant historical reference is the Menologion of Basil II, a 10th-century Greek manuscript that includes the name "Apostolos" among a list of Byzantine officials and dignitaries.

The earliest recorded bearer of the surname APOSTOL is believed to be Ioannes Apostoles, a Byzantine scholar and mathematician who lived in the 11th century. He is known for his contributions to the study of optics and his work on the study of light refraction.

In the 14th century, a notable figure named Theodoros Apostoles served as a high-ranking diplomat and ambassador in the court of the Byzantine Emperor Andronikos II Palaiologos.

During the Ottoman Empire's rule over the Balkans, several individuals with the surname APOSTOL held influential positions as merchants, scholars, and community leaders. One such figure was Georgios Apostoles, a prominent merchant and benefactor who lived in the 16th century and contributed to the establishment of educational institutions in the region.

In more recent history, Miltos Apostolidis (1923-2005) was a renowned Greek novelist, essayist, and playwright, known for his literary works exploring themes of identity, exile, and the human condition.

Another notable bearer of the surname was Konstantinos Apostolou Doxiadis (1913-1975), a Greek architect and urban planner who contributed significantly to the field of ekistics, the science of human settlements.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Apostol

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

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

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

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