2000
#1,530
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,567
First available Census row
Per 100,000 7.99
Uncommon Last name
Engel
A German and Jewish surname meaning "angel," likely referring to a person with angelic qualities or a connection to angels.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 24,262 Americans carry the last name Engel. That puts it at #1,656 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 7.08 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 14,127 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Engel 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 Engel with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
24K
1 in 14,127
Census rank
#1,656
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
7.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
21K
uncommon in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 21,158 bearers of the surname Engel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 7.08 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 1656th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Engel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Engel
The surname Engel is of German origin, derived from the Middle High German word "engel," which means "angel." This surname likely emerged in the medieval period, possibly as an occupational name for someone who played the role of an angel in religious plays or ceremonies, or as a nickname for someone perceived as having angelic qualities.
The earliest recorded instances of the surname Engel can be found in various German regions, such as Bavaria and Saxony, dating back to the 13th and 14th centuries. In some cases, the name may have originated from place names like Engelskirchen, a town in North Rhine-Westphalia, or Engelsdorf, a village in Saxony.
One of the earliest known bearers of the surname Engel was Hans Engel, a German painter and engraver who lived in the late 15th and early 16th centuries. His works, including religious paintings and woodcuts, can be found in various German museums and collections.
Another notable figure with the surname Engel was Samuel Engel, a Swiss philosopher and writer who lived from 1702 to 1784. He was known for his works on aesthetics and was a prominent figure in the Enlightenment movement.
In the 19th century, Johann Jakob Engel (1741-1802) was a prominent German playwright and literary critic. He played a significant role in the development of German drama and was a influential figure in the Sturm und Drang movement.
The surname Engel also has connections to the world of science. Ernst Engel (1821-1896) was a German statistician and economist who formulated the Engel curve, a principle related to household expenditure patterns.
Another notable bearer of the surname was Johann Friedrich Engel (1765-1827), a German writer and historian who wrote extensively on the history of philosophy and literature.
While these are just a few examples, the surname Engel has been present throughout various periods of German history, and its bearers have made significant contributions in fields such as art, literature, philosophy, and science.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Engel
Among Census respondents with the surname Engel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) and Two or More Races (2.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Engel 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 Engel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.1% · 19,497
- Hispanic or Latino3.3% · 705
- Two or more races2.9% · 620
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 179
- Black or African American0.4% · 82
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.4% · 75
Timeline
Historical Census data for Engel
Engel 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
#1,644
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,933
+366 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 7.44
Rank movement Down 114 places
2020
#1,656
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 21,158
-775 bearers (-3.5%)
Per 100,000 7.08
Rank movement Down 12 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #1,530 | 21,567 | 7.99 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #1,644 | 21,933 | 7.44 | +366 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 114 places |
| 2020 | #1,656 | 21,158 | 7.08 | -775 bearers (-3.5%) | Down 12 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 Engel 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 | #1,644 | #1,656 | -0.7% |
| Count | 21,933 | 21,158 | -3.5% |
| Per 100K | 7.44 | 7.08 | -4.9% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Engel bearers went from 21,933 to 21,158 (-3.5% change). The surname moved down 12 positions in the national ranking, going from #1,644 to #1,656.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Engel
FAQ
Engel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Engel?
Name Census estimates that about 24,262 living Americans carry the surname Engel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 14,127 residents.
How common is Engel?
Engel ranks #1,656 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Uncommon." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 7.08 per 100,000 residents, which is about 7 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 21,158 people with the surname Engel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (24,262), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 7.08 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 7.08 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 7 of them to have the surname Engel.
Has Engel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Engel went from 21,933 recorded bearers to 21,158. That is a decrease of 775 (-3.5%). In the national ranking it fell from #1,644 to #1,656.
What does the Census say about the background of Engel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Engel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.3%) 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 Engel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.1% (19,497 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Engel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.1%), Hispanic (3.3%), 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 Engel (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 Engel mean?
A German and Jewish surname meaning "angel," likely referring to a person with angelic qualities or a connection to angels. 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 Engel (7.08 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 are called Engel?
For a quick modern take, check how many Americans have the surname Engel on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.