2010
#133,048
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 127
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Bressel
A surname originating from the German word "Bressel", meaning a small loaf or roll of bread.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 119 Americans carry the last name Bressel. That puts it at #153,590 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,880,289 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Bressel 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
119
1 in 2,880,289
Census rank
#153,590
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
104
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 104 bearers of the surname Bressel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 153590th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Bressel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Bressel
The surname Bressel has its origins in Germany, with the earliest known records dating back to the late 16th century. It is believed to be derived from the German word "Bresse," which referred to a type of lettuce or endive. The name likely originated as a descriptive surname for someone who cultivated or sold these types of vegetables.
One of the earliest known documented instances of the name Bressel can be found in the records of the town of Hannover, where a certain Hans Bressel is mentioned as a landowner in the year 1587. Another early record comes from the city of Cologne, where a merchant named Jakob Bressel is recorded as having lived in the early 17th century.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the name Bressel began to spread across various regions of Germany, with notable individuals bearing the name emerging in different areas. For example, in 1674, a man named Johann Bressel was born in the town of Marburg, and he later became a respected scholar and theologian.
In the 19th century, several Bressels gained prominence in various fields. One notable figure was Wilhelm Bressel, a German mathematician who was born in 1816 and made significant contributions to the field of geometry. Another Bressel of note was Karl Bressel, born in 1842, who was a renowned architect and helped design several prominent buildings in Berlin.
As the name spread across Europe and into other parts of the world through migration, it took on various spellings and variations, such as Bressel, Bresler, and Breslauer. However, the original German form of Bressel remained the most common spelling.
Other notable individuals with the surname Bressel throughout history include:
1. Heinrich Bressel (1783-1856), a German jurist and legal scholar.
2. Emilie Bressel (1807-1886), a German writer and poet.
3. Gustav Bressel (1854-1932), a German-American architect and civil engineer.
4. Friedrich Bressel (1868-1944), a German artist known for his landscape paintings.
5. Ernst Bressel (1890-1972), a German naval officer who served in both World Wars.
While the surname Bressel may not be among the most common or well-known names globally, it has a rich history and has been borne by individuals who have made significant contributions in various fields throughout the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Bressel
Among Census respondents with the surname Bressel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Bressel 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 Bressel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.3% · 97
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.9% · 3
- Two or more races2.9% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Bressel
Bressel appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#153,590
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 104
-23 bearers (-18.1%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 20,542 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #133,048 | 127 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #153,590 | 104 | 0.03 | -23 bearers (-18.1%) | Down 20,542 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 Bressel 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 | #133,048 | #153,590 | -15.4% |
| Count | 127 | 104 | -18.1% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -13.0% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Bressel bearers went from 127 to 104 (-18.1% change). The surname moved down 20,542 positions in the national ranking, going from #133,048 to #153,590.
FAQ
Bressel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Bressel?
Name Census estimates that about 119 living Americans carry the surname Bressel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,880,289 residents.
How common is Bressel?
Bressel ranks #153,590 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, which is about 0 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 104 people with the surname Bressel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (119), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 0 of them to have the surname Bressel.
Has Bressel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Bressel went from 127 recorded bearers to 104. That is a decrease of 23 (-18.1%). In the national ranking it fell from #133,048 to #153,590.
What does the Census say about the background of Bressel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Bressel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.3%. The next largest groups are Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Bressel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.3% (97 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Bressel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.3%), Asian/Pacific Islander (2.9%), Two or More Races (2.9%). 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 Bressel (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 Bressel mean?
A surname originating from the German word "Bressel", meaning a small loaf or roll of bread. 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 Bressel (0.03 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 Bressel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.