2000
#12,858
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,194
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.81
Rare Last name
Axelrod
A Swedish ornamental surname composed of the elements "axel" meaning "shoulder" and "rod" meaning "red."
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,369 Americans carry the last name Axelrod. That puts it at #13,977 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 144,683 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Axelrod 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
2.4K
1 in 144,683
Census rank
#13,977
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 2,066 bearers of the surname Axelrod in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 13977th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Axelrod, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Axelrod
The surname Axelrod originates from Scandinavian and Germanic roots, likely tracing its origins to Sweden or Germany in the early medieval period. The name is believed to be a combination of the Old Norse words "Axel" and "rod," with "Axel" referring to a masculine name and "rod" meaning "clearing" or "land prepared for cultivation." This suggests that the name may have initially identified someone who lived or worked on cleared land.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Axelrod can be found in the Diplomatarium Norvegicum, a collection of medieval Norwegian documents dating back to the 13th century. The name is also mentioned in various German records from the 16th and 17th centuries, indicating its presence in regions with Germanic cultural influences.
During the Middle Ages, variations of the name such as "Axelrode" and "Axelroth" appeared in various local records and manuscripts, reflecting regional spelling variations and linguistic evolutions. The name Axelrod itself is thought to have emerged as a more standardized spelling during the 18th and 19th centuries.
Notable individuals bearing the surname Axelrod throughout history include Johann Axelrod (1692-1774), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister at the court of the Prince-Bishop of Bamberg. Another prominent figure was Emilia Axelrod (1810-1887), a Swedish painter renowned for her portraits and landscapes.
In the 20th century, the name gained recognition with individuals such as Julius Axelrod (1912-2004), an American biochemist who received the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1970 for his groundbreaking work on neurotransmitters. George Axelrod (1922-2003) was an American playwright, screenwriter, and film producer best known for his satirical comedies and collaborations with directors like Billy Wilder.
Other notable figures include David Axelrod (born 1955), an American political consultant and former senior advisor to President Barack Obama, and Steven Axelrod (born 1946), a American businessman and former CEO of Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Axelrod
Among Census respondents with the surname Axelrod, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Axelrod 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 Axelrod surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 1,910
- Hispanic or Latino3.6% · 75
- Two or more races2.3% · 47
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.1% · 23
- Black or African American0.3% · 7
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Axelrod
Axelrod 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
#13,834
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,185
-9 bearers (-0.4%)
Per 100,000 0.74
Rank movement Down 976 places
2020
#13,977
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,066
-119 bearers (-5.4%)
Per 100,000 0.69
Rank movement Down 143 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #12,858 | 2,194 | 0.81 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,834 | 2,185 | 0.74 | -9 bearers (-0.4%) | Down 976 places |
| 2020 | #13,977 | 2,066 | 0.69 | -119 bearers (-5.4%) | Down 143 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 Axelrod 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 | #13,834 | #13,977 | -1.0% |
| Count | 2,185 | 2,066 | -5.4% |
| Per 100K | 0.74 | 0.69 | -6.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Axelrod bearers went from 2,185 to 2,066 (-5.4% change). The surname moved down 143 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,834 to #13,977.
FAQ
Axelrod surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Axelrod?
Name Census estimates that about 2,369 living Americans carry the surname Axelrod. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 144,683 residents.
How common is Axelrod?
Axelrod ranks #13,977 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.69 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 2,066 people with the surname Axelrod. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,369), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.69 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.69 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Axelrod.
Has Axelrod become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Axelrod went from 2,185 recorded bearers to 2,066. That is a decrease of 119 (-5.4%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,834 to #13,977.
What does the Census say about the background of Axelrod?
Among Census respondents with the surname Axelrod, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.6%) and Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Axelrod in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (1,910 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Axelrod appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (3.6%), Two or More Races (2.3%). 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 Axelrod (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 Axelrod mean?
A Swedish ornamental surname composed of the elements "axel" meaning "shoulder" and "rod" meaning "red." 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 Axelrod (0.69 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 Axelrod?
You can see how many people have the last name Axelrod on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.