2000
#9,055
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,319
First available Census row
Per 100,000 1.23
Rare Last name
Lindell
Derived from a topographic name referring to someone who lived near a linden tree or in a linden grove.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 3,675 Americans carry the last name Lindell. That puts it at #9,672 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 93,266 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Lindell 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
3.7K
1 in 93,266
Census rank
#9,672
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
1.1
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
3.2K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 3,205 bearers of the surname Lindell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 9672nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindell, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Lindell
The surname Lindell has its origins in Sweden, where it can be traced back to the 17th century. It is a locational name derived from the Old Swedish word "lind," meaning lime tree, and potentially linked to areas where lime trees were abundant.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Lindell surname can be found in the Swedish church records from the late 1600s, which document individuals with this name residing in various regions of the country. The name may have originated as a farm or village name, referring to a settlement near a lime tree grove or a specific landmark featuring these trees.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the Lindell surname began to spread beyond Sweden's borders as individuals bearing this name emigrated to other parts of Europe and North America. Notable individuals with the Lindell surname include Erik Lindell (1808-1888), a Swedish playwright and poet, and Carl Lindell (1819-1898), a Swedish military officer and politician.
In the United States, one of the earliest recorded instances of the Lindell surname dates back to the mid-1800s. Henry Lindell (1835-1910), a Swedish-American businessman and philanthropist, made significant contributions to the city of St. Louis, Missouri, where he founded the Lindell Hotel and helped establish various cultural institutions.
Another prominent figure was Johan Lindell (1859-1925), a Swedish-American farmer and politician who served as the 14th Governor of Minnesota from 1919 to 1923. Carl Lindell (1877-1954) was a Swedish-American painter known for his landscape and seascape paintings, while Sven Lindell (1901-1980) was a Swedish-American architect and urban planner who designed several notable buildings in New York City.
In the United Kingdom, the Lindell surname appears to have been introduced through Swedish immigrants in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. One notable individual was Arthur Lindell (1912-1994), a British-Swedish writer and translator who played a significant role in introducing Swedish literature to English-speaking audiences.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Lindell
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindell, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Lindell 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 Lindell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White92.4% · 2,960
- Two or more races2.7% · 85
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 82
- Black or African American1.3% · 42
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 27
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.3% · 9
Timeline
Historical Census data for Lindell
Lindell 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
#8,990
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,639
+320 bearers (+9.6%)
Per 100,000 1.23
Rank movement Up 65 places
2020
#9,672
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 3,205
-434 bearers (-11.9%)
Per 100,000 1.07
Rank movement Down 682 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #9,055 | 3,319 | 1.23 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #8,990 | 3,639 | 1.23 | +320 bearers (+9.6%) | Up 65 places |
| 2020 | #9,672 | 3,205 | 1.07 | -434 bearers (-11.9%) | Down 682 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 Lindell 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 | #8,990 | #9,672 | -7.6% |
| Count | 3,639 | 3,205 | -11.9% |
| Per 100K | 1.23 | 1.07 | -12.8% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Lindell bearers went from 3,639 to 3,205 (-11.9% change). The surname moved down 682 positions in the national ranking, going from #8,990 to #9,672.
FAQ
Lindell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Lindell?
Name Census estimates that about 3,675 living Americans carry the surname Lindell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 93,266 residents.
How common is Lindell?
Lindell ranks #9,672 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 1.07 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 3,205 people with the surname Lindell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (3,675), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 1.07 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 1.07 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Lindell.
Has Lindell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Lindell went from 3,639 recorded bearers to 3,205. That is a decrease of 434 (-11.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #8,990 to #9,672.
What does the Census say about the background of Lindell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Lindell, the largest self-reported group is White at 92.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (2.7%) and Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Lindell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 92.4% (2,960 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Lindell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (92.4%), Two or More Races (2.7%), Hispanic (2.6%). 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 Lindell (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 Lindell mean?
Derived from a topographic name referring to someone who lived near a linden tree or in a linden grove. 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 Lindell (1.07 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 share the surname Lindell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.