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

Bedel, 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 Bedel surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Bedel in America

Bedel is the 34801st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Bedel surname appeared 649 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 Bedel.

We can also compare 2010 data for Bedel 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 Bedel

The surname BEDEL originated in England during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old English word "bydel," which means "messenger" or "summoner." The name was initially given as an occupational surname to individuals who worked as town criers, messengers, or summoners for the local authorities or the church.

In the Domesday Book of 1086, the earliest known record of the name, it is listed as "Bedellus" and "Bedel." This suggests that the name was already in use among the Anglo-Saxon population before the Norman Conquest of 1066. The name was particularly prevalent in the counties of Essex, Suffolk, and Norfolk in East Anglia.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname BEDEL was Roger Bedel, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1195. Another early bearer of the name was Richard le Bedel, who was recorded in the Hundred Rolls of Oxfordshire in 1273.

The surname BEDEL has also been associated with various place names throughout England. For instance, the village of Bedell in Hertfordshire was recorded as "Bedel" in the Domesday Book. Additionally, there is a hamlet called Bedell in the parish of Wickham Bishops, Essex.

Several notable individuals throughout history have borne the surname BEDEL. One of the most famous was William Bedel (1561-1642), an English clergyman who served as the Bishop of Kilmore and Ardagh in Ireland. He is known for his efforts to translate the Bible into Irish and his advocacy for the rights of the Irish people.

Another notable figure was John Bedel (c. 1480-1537), an English Catholic priest who was executed during the reign of King Henry VIII for his opposition to the Protestant Reformation and his loyalty to the Pope. He was beatified by the Catholic Church in 1888.

In the realm of literature, Grace Bedell (1848-1936) was an American child who famously wrote a letter to Abraham Lincoln suggesting that he grow a beard, which he subsequently did. This incident is widely documented in Lincoln biographies and has become a part of American folklore.

William Bedell (1571-1642), an English scholar and clergyman, was another prominent bearer of the surname. He served as the Provost of Trinity College, Dublin, and was renowned for his expertise in Arabic and Hebrew.

Finally, John Bedell (1633-1691) was an English mathematician and philosopher who made significant contributions to the development of calculus and was a contemporary of Sir Isaac Newton.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Bedel

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!