2000
#7,302
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,208
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.56
Rare Last name
Bartell
An occupational surname referring to a barley grower or barkeep.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 4,563 Americans carry the last name Bartell. That puts it at #7,985 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.33 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 75,116 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bartell 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 Bartell with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
4.6K
1 in 75,116
Census rank
#7,985
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,979 bearers of the surname Bartell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.33 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 7985th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bartell, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bartell
The surname Bartell is of German origin, derived from the personal name Bartholomew, which ultimately traces its roots back to the Aramaic name Bar-Talmay, meaning "son of the furrow" or "son of the ploughman." The name first emerged during the Middle Ages, around the 12th century, in various parts of Germany.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Bartell can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from the region of Saxony, dating back to the 13th century. In this document, a certain Henricus Bartell is mentioned as a landowner in the town of Merseburg.
During the 14th century, the Bartell name appeared in various records from the Rhineland region of Germany, particularly in the city of Cologne. One notable figure from this era was Johannes Bartell, a prominent merchant and member of the city council in Cologne, who lived between 1325 and 1392.
As the centuries progressed, the Bartell name spread across Germany and into neighboring countries, with variations in spelling emerging, such as Bartel, Barthel, and Bartells. In the 16th century, a prominent figure bearing this surname was Hans Bartell, a German Renaissance painter and engraver, born in Nuremberg around 1495.
Another notable individual was Johann Bartell, a German composer and organist who lived from 1675 to 1738. He is best known for his contributions to the development of the Protestant church music tradition in Germany during the Baroque period.
In the 19th century, Carl Bartell, a German-American botanist and horticulturist, made significant contributions to the study of plant life in the United States. He was born in Saxony in 1823 and later immigrated to the United States, where he worked as a botanist and horticulturist for various institutions, including the Missouri Botanical Garden.
While the surname Bartell has its origins in Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration. However, its earliest roots can be traced back to the German regions, where it emerged as a patronymic name derived from the personal name Bartholomew.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bartell
Among Census respondents with the surname Bartell, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (4.1%).
The bar chart below shows how Bartell 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 Bartell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White84.4% · 3,358
- Black or African American7.2% · 287
- Two or more races4.1% · 164
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 132
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 21
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 17
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bartell
Bartell 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
#7,084
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,726
+518 bearers (+12.3%)
Per 100,000 1.60
Rank movement Up 218 places
2020
#7,985
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,979
-747 bearers (-15.8%)
Per 100,000 1.33
Rank movement Down 901 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #7,302 | 4,208 | 1.56 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #7,084 | 4,726 | 1.60 | +518 bearers (+12.3%) | Up 218 places |
| 2020 | #7,985 | 3,979 | 1.33 | -747 bearers (-15.8%) | Down 901 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 Bartell 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 | #7,084 | #7,985 | -12.7% |
| Count | 4,726 | 3,979 | -15.8% |
| Per 100K | 1.60 | 1.33 | -16.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bartell bearers went from 4,726 to 3,979 (-15.8% change). The surname moved down 901 positions in the national ranking, going from #7,084 to #7,985.
FAQ
Bartell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bartell?
Name Census estimates that about 4,563 living Americans carry the surname Bartell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 75,116 residents.
How common is Bartell?
Bartell ranks #7,985 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.33 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 3,979 people with the surname Bartell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (4,563), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.33 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.33 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 Bartell.
Has Bartell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bartell went from 4,726 recorded bearers to 3,979. That is a decrease of 747 (-15.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #7,084 to #7,985.
What does the Census say about the background of Bartell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bartell, the largest self-reported group is White at 84.4%. The next largest groups are Black (7.2%) and Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Bartell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 84.4% (3,358 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bartell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (84.4%), Black (7.2%), Two or More Races (4.1%). 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 Bartell (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 Bartell mean?
An occupational surname referring to a barley grower or barkeep. 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 Bartell (1.33 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 share the surname Bartell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.