2000
#34,071
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 630
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.23
Very Rare Last name
Fluegel
A German surname derived from the Middle High German word for "wing".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 735 Americans carry the last name Fluegel. That puts it at #37,363 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.21 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 466,332 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fluegel 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
735
1 in 466,332
Census rank
#37,363
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.2
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
641
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 641 bearers of the surname Fluegel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.21 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 37363rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fluegel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fluegel
The surname FLUEGEL originated in Germany, emerging around the 13th century. It is derived from the German word "Flügel," meaning "wing" or "fin." This name may have been given as a descriptive nickname to someone with a peculiar wing-like physical characteristic or trait.
In the 14th century, the name appeared in various records across Germanic regions, with spellings such as Flugel, Flügel, and Fluegel. One of the earliest documented instances is found in the Berne Shaking Codex, a Swiss manuscript from the late 14th century, which mentions a certain "Hans Flugel."
The FLUEGEL surname is also linked to several place names across Germany, such as Flügeln in Lower Saxony and Flügelau in Rhineland-Palatinate. These locations may have been the origin of the name for some families who later adopted it as their surname.
Notable individuals with the surname FLUEGEL include Johann Gottfried Flügel (1788-1855), a German Orientalist and lexicographer, known for his influential Arabic-German dictionary. Another was Grete Flügel (1907-1993), a German painter and graphic artist associated with the Berlin Secession movement.
In the 16th century, a prominent bearer of the name was Johann Flügel (1542-1617), a German theologian and author who served as the court preacher to the Elector of Saxony. His works on Protestant theology were widely read during the Reformation era.
Another historical figure was Karl Friedrich Flügel (1791-1879), a German lawyer and politician who served as the Minister of Justice for the Kingdom of Saxony in the mid-19th century.
In the realm of music, Johann Nepomuk Flügel (1783-1856) was a notable German composer and conductor who worked in Vienna and composed several operas and ballets during the early 19th century.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fluegel
Among Census respondents with the surname Fluegel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Fluegel 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 Fluegel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 592
- Hispanic or Latino3.4% · 22
- Two or more races2.8% · 18
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.5% · 3
- Black or African American0.2% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fluegel
Fluegel 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
#33,645
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 677
+47 bearers (+7.5%)
Per 100,000 0.23
Rank movement Up 426 places
2020
#37,363
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 641
-36 bearers (-5.3%)
Per 100,000 0.21
Rank movement Down 3,718 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #34,071 | 630 | 0.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #33,645 | 677 | 0.23 | +47 bearers (+7.5%) | Up 426 places |
| 2020 | #37,363 | 641 | 0.21 | -36 bearers (-5.3%) | Down 3,718 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 Fluegel 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 | #33,645 | #37,363 | -11.1% |
| Count | 677 | 641 | -5.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.23 | 0.21 | -6.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fluegel bearers went from 677 to 641 (-5.3% change). The surname moved down 3,718 positions in the national ranking, going from #33,645 to #37,363.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Fluegel
FAQ
Fluegel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fluegel?
Name Census estimates that about 735 living Americans carry the surname Fluegel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 466,332 residents.
How common is Fluegel?
Fluegel ranks #37,363 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.21 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 641 people with the surname Fluegel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (735), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.21 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.21 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 Fluegel.
Has Fluegel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fluegel went from 677 recorded bearers to 641. That is a decrease of 36 (-5.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #33,645 to #37,363.
What does the Census say about the background of Fluegel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fluegel, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.4%) and Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Fluegel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (592 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fluegel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Hispanic (3.4%), Two or More Races (2.8%). 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 Fluegel (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 Fluegel mean?
A German surname derived from the Middle High German word for "wing". 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 Fluegel (0.21 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 Americans have the surname Fluegel?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.