2000
#102,173
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 163
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Garfunkel
Germanic surname meaning "garden funnel" or "flower funnel".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 297 Americans carry the last name Garfunkel. That puts it at #79,345 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.09 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 1,154,055 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Garfunkel 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
297
1 in 1,154,055
Census rank
#79,345
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
259
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 259 bearers of the surname Garfunkel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.09 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 79345th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Garfunkel
The surname Garfunkel is of German origin, specifically from the region of Bavaria, and dates back to the 16th century. It is thought to be derived from the German word "Garfunkel," meaning "small funnel," which may have been an occupational name for someone who made or sold funnels.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Garfunkel can be found in a Bavarian census record from 1589, which lists a family with the surname Garfunkel residing in the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber. This suggests that the name was already established in that region by the late 16th century.
In the 17th century, the Garfunkel surname appears in various church records and tax rolls from various towns and villages in Bavaria, indicating that the name had spread throughout the region. Some variations in spelling, such as Garfunckel and Garfunkel, can also be found in these early records.
One notable figure with the Garfunkel surname was Johann Garfunkel, a German philosopher and theologian born in 1678 in Nuremberg. He authored several influential works on ethics and moral philosophy, and his teachings were widely studied in universities across Europe during the 18th century.
In the 19th century, the Garfunkel surname began to appear in records from other parts of Germany, as well as in neighboring countries like Austria and Switzerland. This suggests that families with this surname had begun to migrate and settle in new areas.
Another notable individual with the Garfunkel surname was Wilhelm Garfunkel, a German composer and musician born in 1824 in Berlin. He is best known for his operas and symphonic works, which were widely performed in many of the major concert halls of Europe during the late 19th century.
As the 20th century approached, the Garfunkel surname continued to spread, with families bearing this name emigrating to other parts of the world, including the United States and Canada. One notable example is the American singer-songwriter Art Garfunkel, born in 1941, who rose to fame as part of the folk-rock duo Simon & Garfunkel.
Overall, the surname Garfunkel has a rich history dating back to the 16th century in Bavaria, Germany, and has since spread to various parts of the world, with notable individuals bearing this surname making significant contributions in fields such as philosophy, music, and the arts.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Garfunkel
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Garfunkel 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 Garfunkel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.1% · 241
- Hispanic or Latino6.2% · 16
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.4% · 1
- Two or more races0.4% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Garfunkel
Garfunkel 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
#95,115
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 192
+29 bearers (+17.8%)
Per 100,000 0.07
Rank movement Up 7,058 places
2020
#79,345
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 259
+67 bearers (+34.9%)
Per 100,000 0.09
Rank movement Up 15,770 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #102,173 | 163 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #95,115 | 192 | 0.07 | +29 bearers (+17.8%) | Up 7,058 places |
| 2020 | #79,345 | 259 | 0.09 | +67 bearers (+34.9%) | Up 15,770 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 Garfunkel 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 | #95,115 | #79,345 | 16.6% |
| Count | 192 | 259 | 34.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.07 | 0.09 | 23.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Garfunkel bearers went from 192 to 259 (+34.9% change). The surname moved up 15,770 positions in the national ranking, going from #95,115 to #79,345.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Garfunkel
FAQ
Garfunkel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Garfunkel?
Name Census estimates that about 297 living Americans carry the surname Garfunkel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 1,154,055 residents.
How common is Garfunkel?
Garfunkel ranks #79,345 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.09 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 259 people with the surname Garfunkel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (297), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.09 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.09 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 Garfunkel.
Has Garfunkel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Garfunkel went from 192 recorded bearers to 259. That is an increase of 67 (+34.9%). In the national ranking it rose from #95,115 to #79,345.
What does the Census say about the background of Garfunkel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Garfunkel, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (6.2%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%). 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 Garfunkel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.1% (241 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Garfunkel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.1%), Hispanic (6.2%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.4%). 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 Garfunkel (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 Garfunkel mean?
Germanic surname meaning "garden funnel" or "flower funnel". 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 Garfunkel (0.09 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 Garfunkel?
Our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers how many people are called Garfunkel at a glance, with the living-bearer count up front.