2000
#6,592
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,741
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.76
Rare Last name
Fogel
A Jewish surname derived from the Yiddish word "fogel," meaning bird, often referring to a bird catcher or seller.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 5,440 Americans carry the last name Fogel. That puts it at #6,823 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 63,006 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Fogel 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 Fogel with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
5.4K
1 in 63,006
Census rank
#6,823
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
4.7K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 4,744 bearers of the surname Fogel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 6823rd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogel, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Fogel
The surname FOGEL originated in the German regions of central Europe during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the German word 'Vogel', meaning 'bird'. This name likely referred to someone who kept birds or lived near an area populated by many birds.
The earliest recorded spelling of the name was 'Vogel' in the 13th century. As the name spread across German-speaking areas, various spellings emerged, such as Fogel, Fögel, and Vogl. These variations were often due to regional dialects and the personal preferences of scribes who recorded the name.
One of the earliest known references to the name Fogel can be found in the Deutsches Rechtswörterbuch, a German legal dictionary from the 16th century. This suggests that individuals with this surname may have held legal or administrative positions during that time period.
In the 17th century, the name Fogel appeared in the records of the town of Augsburg, in present-day Bavaria, Germany. Augsburg was a prominent city during the Renaissance and Reformation, and it is possible that Fogels played a role in the cultural and religious developments of the era.
Notable individuals with the surname Fogel include:
1. Johann Fogel (1588-1638), a German composer and organist from Nuremberg.
2. Anna Fogel (1634-1698), a German painter known for her still-life works.
3. Franz Fogel (1718-1794), an Austrian architect who designed several churches and palaces in Vienna.
4. Jakob Fogel (1801-1877), a German-American farmer and politician who served in the Pennsylvania State Legislature.
5. Daniel Fogel (1858-1937), a Russian-American writer and journalist who documented the experiences of Jewish immigrants in the United States.
Over the centuries, the surname Fogel has also been associated with various place names, such as Vogelsang (meaning 'bird's song') and Vogelherd (meaning 'bird's hearth'), reflecting the name's origins and its connection to natural imagery.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Fogel
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogel, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Fogel 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 Fogel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White91.2% · 4,328
- Hispanic or Latino3.5% · 168
- Two or more races2.5% · 120
- Black or African American1.4% · 68
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.0% · 49
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 11
Timeline
Historical Census data for Fogel
Fogel 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
#6,784
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,973
+232 bearers (+4.9%)
Per 100,000 1.69
Rank movement Down 192 places
2020
#6,823
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 4,744
-229 bearers (-4.6%)
Per 100,000 1.59
Rank movement Down 39 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #6,592 | 4,741 | 1.76 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #6,784 | 4,973 | 1.69 | +232 bearers (+4.9%) | Down 192 places |
| 2020 | #6,823 | 4,744 | 1.59 | -229 bearers (-4.6%) | Down 39 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 Fogel 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 | #6,784 | #6,823 | -0.6% |
| Count | 4,973 | 4,744 | -4.6% |
| Per 100K | 1.69 | 1.59 | -6.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Fogel bearers went from 4,973 to 4,744 (-4.6% change). The surname moved down 39 positions in the national ranking, going from #6,784 to #6,823.
FAQ
Fogel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Fogel?
Name Census estimates that about 5,440 living Americans carry the surname Fogel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 63,006 residents.
How common is Fogel?
Fogel ranks #6,823 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.59 per 100,000 residents, which is about 2 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 4,744 people with the surname Fogel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (5,440), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.59 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.59 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 2 of them to have the surname Fogel.
Has Fogel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Fogel went from 4,973 recorded bearers to 4,744. That is a decrease of 229 (-4.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #6,784 to #6,823.
What does the Census say about the background of Fogel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Fogel, the largest self-reported group is White at 91.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.5%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Fogel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 91.2% (4,328 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Fogel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (91.2%), Hispanic (3.5%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Fogel (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 Fogel mean?
A Jewish surname derived from the Yiddish word "fogel," meaning bird, often referring to a bird catcher or seller. 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 Fogel (1.59 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 Fogel?
You can see how many people have the last name Fogel on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.