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

Channell, 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 Channell surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Channell in America

Channell is the 9765th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Channell surname appeared 3,318 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Channell.

We can also compare 2010 data for Channell 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 Channell

The surname Channell originates from the Old French word "chanel", meaning a channel or watercourse. It is believed to have first emerged in the region of Normandy, France, during the 11th century.

The earliest known record of the name dates back to the Domesday Book of 1086, where it appears as "de Chanel". This suggests that the name may have initially referred to someone who lived near a channel or stream.

As the name spread throughout England during the Norman Conquest, various spelling variations emerged, including Chenell, Channill, and Channyll. These variations likely reflected regional dialects and pronunciations.

One of the earliest recorded individuals with the name was Sir William Channell, a knight who fought in the Hundred Years' War during the 14th century. Another notable figure was John Channell, a merchant from Bristol, England, who was active in the early 16th century.

In the 17th century, the name Channell appeared in historical records from the American colonies. One such individual was Richard Channell, who was born in Virginia in 1652 and served as a member of the House of Burgesses.

During the 18th century, the surname Channell was associated with several prominent figures, including Sir Thomas Channell (1718-1789), a British naval officer, and John Channell (1730-1803), an English clergyman and author.

In the 19th century, the name gained further recognition with individuals like William Henry Channell (1828-1901), a British painter and illustrator, and Frederick Channell (1853-1924), a Canadian businessman and politician.

Throughout its history, the surname Channell has been linked to various locations and place names, such as Channell Island in South Carolina, Channellville in Pennsylvania, and Channell Hill in Tennessee.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Channell

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

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

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

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