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

Goepel, 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 Goepel surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Goepel in America

Goepel is the 81181st most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Goepel surname appeared 233 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Goepel.

We can also compare 2010 data for Goepel 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 Goepel

The surname Goepel has its origins in the German language and can be traced back to the late Middle Ages. It is believed to have emerged in the regions of Saxony and Thuringia, located in present-day eastern Germany.

The name Goepel is derived from the Middle High German word "göpfel," which translates to "gable" or "pediment." This word refers to the triangular portion of an exterior wall between the edges of a sloping roof. It is likely that the surname Goepel was initially an occupational name for someone who worked as a carpenter or roofer, specializing in the construction of gables.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Goepel can be found in the "Sachsenspiegel," a medieval legal code compiled in the 13th century. This document mentions a certain "Konrad Göpfel" from the town of Merseburg in Saxony-Anhalt.

During the 15th century, the name appears in various records and manuscripts from the region. For instance, the "Leipziger Bürgerbuch" (Leipzig Citizen Book) from 1476 lists a "Hans Gopel" among the citizens of the city.

Notable individuals bearing the surname Goepel throughout history include:

1. Andreas Gottlieb Goepel (1768-1847), a German jurist and legal scholar from Saxony.
2. Carl Eduard Goepel (1828-1895), a German architect and Professor of Architecture at the Berlin Technical University.
3. Erhard Goepel (1891-1943), a German politician and member of the Nazi Party during the Third Reich.
4. Erwin Goepel (1902-1976), a German opera singer and baritone who performed at the Bayreuth Festival.
5. Karl Goepel (1847-1927), a German painter and illustrator known for his landscapes and portraiture.

The surname Goepel has also been associated with various place names and locations in Germany, such as Göpelgrün, a village in the Vogtlandkreis district of Saxony, and Göpelskuppe, a hill near the town of Gera in Thuringia.

While the name Goepel is predominantly found in Germany, it has also spread to other parts of the world through migration and immigration. However, the detailed history and origins of this surname remain firmly rooted in the German-speaking regions of central Europe.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Goepel

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

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

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

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