2000
#13,012
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,160
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.80
Rare Last name
Brendel
A German toponymic surname derived from places named Brendel or Brendel, likely referring to a place with swamps.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,238 Americans carry the last name Brendel. That puts it at #14,640 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.65 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 153,152 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Brendel 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
2.2K
1 in 153,152
Census rank
#14,640
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,952 bearers of the surname Brendel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.65 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14640th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Brendel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Brendel
The surname BRENDEL originated in Germany, specifically in the Rhineland region. The name is believed to have derived from the Old German word "brennen," which means "to burn." This suggests that the name may have originated as a descriptive nickname for someone who worked with fire or lived near a burning area.
The earliest recorded instance of the name BRENDEL dates back to the 13th century, when it appeared in various medieval records and manuscripts from the Rhineland region. One notable example is the mention of a "Johannes Brendel" in a land registry document from the city of Cologne, dated around 1275.
During the Middle Ages, the name BRENDEL was primarily concentrated in the regions of present-day western Germany, particularly in the states of Rhineland-Palatinate, Saarland, and parts of Hesse. It was also found in neighboring areas, such as Luxembourg and Alsace-Lorraine in France.
The name BRENDEL has several variations in spelling, including Brendel, Brendle, Brendel, and Brentel. These variations likely emerged due to regional dialects and differences in pronunciation and spelling conventions over time.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the surname BRENDEL was Hans Brendel, a German artist and engraver who lived in the 15th century (c. 1455 - c. 1520). His works, which included engravings and woodcuts, were influential in the development of German Renaissance art.
Another notable figure was Johann Brendel (1552 - 1638), a German writer and theologian from Saxony. He is best known for his works on Protestant theology and his contributions to the Lutheran church.
In the 19th century, Karl Brendel (1811 - 1868) was a German music critic and writer who played a significant role in promoting the works of composers like Robert Schumann and Johannes Brahms.
The name BRENDEL also has ties to various place names in Germany, such as Brendel (a village in Rhineland-Palatinate), Brendlorenzen (a municipality in Bavaria), and Brendbach (a river in Hesse). These place names likely derived from the surname itself or from similar root words related to burning or fire.
Among more recent historical figures, Albert Brendel (born 1931) is a renowned Austrian-British pianist and author. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest classical pianists of the 20th century and has received numerous honors and awards for his performances and recordings.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Brendel
Among Census respondents with the surname Brendel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Brendel 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 Brendel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.8% · 1,811
- Two or more races3.3% · 65
- Hispanic or Latino2.5% · 49
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 18
- Black or African American0.5% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Brendel
Brendel 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
#13,407
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 2,273
+113 bearers (+5.2%)
Per 100,000 0.77
Rank movement Down 395 places
2020
#14,640
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,952
-321 bearers (-14.1%)
Per 100,000 0.65
Rank movement Down 1,233 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #13,012 | 2,160 | 0.80 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #13,407 | 2,273 | 0.77 | +113 bearers (+5.2%) | Down 395 places |
| 2020 | #14,640 | 1,952 | 0.65 | -321 bearers (-14.1%) | Down 1,233 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 Brendel 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 | #13,407 | #14,640 | -9.2% |
| Count | 2,273 | 1,952 | -14.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.77 | 0.65 | -15.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Brendel bearers went from 2,273 to 1,952 (-14.1% change). The surname moved down 1,233 positions in the national ranking, going from #13,407 to #14,640.
FAQ
Brendel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Brendel?
Name Census estimates that about 2,238 living Americans carry the surname Brendel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 153,152 residents.
How common is Brendel?
Brendel ranks #14,640 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.65 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 1,952 people with the surname Brendel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,238), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.65 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.65 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 Brendel.
Has Brendel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Brendel went from 2,273 recorded bearers to 1,952. That is a decrease of 321 (-14.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #13,407 to #14,640.
What does the Census say about the background of Brendel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Brendel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.3%) and Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Brendel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.8% (1,811 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Brendel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.8%), Two or More Races (3.3%), Hispanic (2.5%). 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 Brendel (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 Brendel mean?
A German toponymic surname derived from places named Brendel or Brendel, likely referring to a place with swamps. 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 Brendel (0.65 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 Brendel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.