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

Engels, 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 Engels surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Engels in America

Engels is the 10026th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Engels surname appeared 3,213 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 Engels.

We can also compare 2010 data for Engels 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 Engels

The surname Engels is of Germanic origin and is believed to have originated in the region of Westphalia in present-day Germany during the Middle Ages. The name is derived from the Old German word "engil," which means "angel" or "messenger of God." It was likely originally given as a descriptive name to someone who was considered to have angelic qualities or who worked as a messenger or courier.

The earliest recorded instances of the name Engels can be traced back to the 13th century, with references found in various medieval manuscripts and records from the region. One notable early mention is in the Codex Diplomaticus Westphaliae, a collection of historical documents from Westphalia, where a certain Johannes Engels is mentioned in a land deed from the year 1287.

In the late 14th century, the name Engels appears in the records of the city of Münster in Westphalia, with a certain Henricus Engels being listed as a member of the town council in 1392. This suggests that the name had already become established among the local gentry and upper classes by that time.

Over the centuries, the name Engels has been associated with several notable individuals, including Friedrich Engels (1820-1895), the German philosopher, political theorist, and co-founder of Marxist theory alongside Karl Marx. Other notable figures with this surname include:

1. Johann Engelbert Engels (1741-1805), a German painter and engraver known for his landscapes and still-life works.
2. Johann Jakob Engels (1767-1828), a German architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in Berlin and other German cities.
3. Friedrich Wilhelm Engels (1796-1878), a German military officer and writer who served in the Prussian army during the Napoleonic Wars.
4. Hermann Engels (1822-1909), a German industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Engels Chemical Works in Chemnitz, Saxony.
5. Ewald Friedrich Graf von Engels (1891-1917), a German World War I fighter pilot and recipient of the prestigious Pour le Mérite military honor.

While the name Engels has its roots in the Westphalian region of Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, carried by migration and the movement of people over the centuries. However, its origins can be traced back to the Old German word "engil" and its association with the concept of angelic or divine messengers.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Engels

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

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

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

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