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

Järvelä, 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 Järvelä surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Järvelä in America

Järvelä is the 70645th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Järvelä surname appeared 277 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 Järvelä.

We can also compare 2010 data for Järvelä 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 Järvelä

The surname Jarvela is of Finnish origin, with its roots dating back to the 16th century in the southwestern regions of Finland. Derived from the Finnish word "jarvi," meaning "lake," Jarvela likely referred to someone who lived near a lake or resided in an area abundant with lakes.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Jarvela can be found in the parish records of Turku, Finland, from the late 1500s. At that time, the name was spelled "Järfwelä," following the older Swedish orthography commonly used in Finnish records.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Jarvela surname appeared in various documents and records across Finland, particularly in the regions of Satakunta and Ostrobothnia. Notable individuals bearing this name include Johan Jarvela (1652-1721), a prominent landowner and merchant in Ostrobothnia, and Anna Jarvela (1734-1802), a respected midwife in the town of Rauma.

In the 19th century, the spelling of the name became more standardized to its modern form, "Jarvela." One noteworthy individual from this period was Henrik Jarvela (1823-1891), a respected teacher and author who published several textbooks on Finnish grammar and language.

As Finland underwent industrialization and urbanization in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, many Jarvelaians migrated from rural areas to larger cities. This led to the spread of the surname across the country and beyond. Eero Jarvela (1889-1964), for instance, was a successful businessman and industrialist who played a significant role in the development of the Finnish pulp and paper industry.

Another prominent figure was Yrjö Jarvela (1902-1978), a renowned architect responsible for designing several iconic buildings in Helsinki, including the Olympic Stadium, which hosted the 1952 Summer Olympics.

Throughout its history, the Jarvela surname has maintained a strong connection to its Finnish roots, reflecting the country's rich cultural heritage and geographic landscape.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Järvelä

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

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

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

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