2010
#151,532
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 108
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Gendell
A variant spelling of the German surname Gendel, possibly descriptive of a tenant farmer.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 134 Americans carry the last name Gendell. That puts it at #144,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,557,868 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Gendell 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
134
1 in 2,557,868
Census rank
#144,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
117
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 117 bearers of the surname Gendell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 144270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Gendell, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Gendell
The surname Gendell is believed to have originated in the Brittany region of northwestern France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old Breton word "gendall," which means "branch" or "offshoot." This suggests that the name may have initially referred to a family or an individual who lived near a notable tree or wooded area.
The earliest recorded instances of the name can be found in medieval French census records and tax rolls from the 13th and 14th centuries. In these documents, various spellings such as "Gendal," "Gendalle," and "Gendaul" appear, reflecting the phonetic variations common in that era.
One notable historical figure bearing this surname was Étienne Gendell (c. 1450-1525), a prominent merchant and landowner from the town of Rennes in Brittany. He is mentioned in several contemporary chronicles for his involvement in local trade disputes and his philanthropic efforts to support the construction of a new church in his hometown.
In the 16th century, the name appears to have spread beyond Brittany, with records indicating Gendell families residing in other parts of France, such as Normandy and Poitou. One such individual was Jean Gendell (1530-1598), a respected lawyer and legal scholar from Rouen, whose treatises on French civil law were widely read and influential during the Renaissance period.
As the centuries progressed, the Gendell surname also found its way to other European countries, likely through migration and intermarriage. For example, in the late 17th century, a German merchant named Hans Gendell (1645-1712) is recorded as having established a successful trading company in Amsterdam, dealing in textiles and spices from the Dutch East Indies.
Another notable bearer of the Gendell name was Marie-Louise Gendell (1782-1853), a French writer and feminist activist who advocated for women's education and equal rights during the early 19th century. Her published works, including the influential essay "De l'éducation des filles" (On the Education of Girls), helped shape the emerging feminist movement in France.
While the Gendell surname is relatively uncommon today, it remains a distinctive reminder of the family's ancient roots in the Breton region of France and their long history spanning several centuries across Europe.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Gendell
Among Census respondents with the surname Gendell, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Gendell 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 Gendell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White99.1% · 116
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Gendell
Gendell appears in 2 published Census surname files: 2010, 2020. The cards below show how the name's rank and bearer count changed across each release.
2020
#144,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 117
+9 bearers (+8.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 7,262 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | #151,532 | 108 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2020 | #144,270 | 117 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.3%) | Up 7,262 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 Gendell 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 | #151,532 | #144,270 | 4.8% |
| Count | 108 | 117 | 8.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -2.1% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Gendell bearers went from 108 to 117 (+8.3% change). The surname moved up 7,262 positions in the national ranking, going from #151,532 to #144,270.
FAQ
Gendell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Gendell?
Name Census estimates that about 134 living Americans carry the surname Gendell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,557,868 residents.
How common is Gendell?
Gendell ranks #144,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 117 people with the surname Gendell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (134), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Gendell.
Has Gendell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Gendell went from 108 recorded bearers to 117. That is an increase of 9 (+8.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #151,532 to #144,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Gendell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Gendell, the largest self-reported group is White at 99.1%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Gendell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 99.1% (116 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Gendell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (99.1%), Two or More Races (0.9%). 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 Gendell (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 Gendell mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname Gendel, possibly descriptive of a tenant farmer. 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 Gendell (0.04 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 have the last name Gendell?
If you just want to know how many people have the last name Gendell, HowManyOfMe.org gives you the headline number in one glance.