2000
#142,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 107
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Manelis
A Greek surname likely derived from the given name Emmanuel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 135 Americans carry the last name Manelis. That puts it at #143,511 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,538,921 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Manelis 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
135
1 in 2,538,921
Census rank
#143,511
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
118
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 118 bearers of the surname Manelis in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 143511th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Manelis, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Black (0.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Manelis
The surname Manelis is of Greek origin, derived from the ancient Greek word 'manas', meaning 'solitary' or 'lonely'. It is believed to have originated in the Byzantine Empire, particularly in the regions of Anatolia and the Greek islands.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Manelis can be found in a 12th-century manuscript from the Monastery of St. Catherine on Mount Sinai. The manuscript mentions a monk named Theodoros Manelis, who was a scribe and scholar during the reign of the Byzantine Emperor Manuel I Komnenos (1143-1180).
In the 13th century, the name appeared in various documents from the Venetian-ruled island of Crete, suggesting that the Manelis family may have had roots there. One notable figure was Georgios Manelis, a merchant and landowner who lived in the city of Chania around 1280.
During the Ottoman period, the Manelis surname was prevalent among Greek communities in the Aegean region and parts of modern-day Turkey. In the 16th century, a prominent scholar named Ioannis Manelis taught at the Patriarchal School in Constantinople (modern-day Istanbul).
The name Manelis also has a connection to the island of Chios, where it was recorded in several historical documents from the 17th and 18th centuries. One notable figure was Alexandros Manelis, a shipowner and trader who lived in the town of Vrontados in the late 1700s.
As the Greek diaspora spread across the world, the Manelis surname traveled with it. In the 19th century, Dimitrios Manelis (1835-1912) was a Greek immigrant to the United States who became a successful businessman and philanthropist in New York City.
Other notable individuals with the Manelis surname include:
1. Petros Manelis (1888-1964), a Greek painter and sculptor known for his works depicting traditional Greek life.
2. Georgios Manelis (1910-1992), a Greek politician and diplomat who served as the country's Minister of Foreign Affairs in the 1960s.
3. Eleni Manelis (1926-2008), a Greek actress and theater director who was a prominent figure in the cultural life of Athens.
4. Alexandros Manelis (1952-), a Greek-American author and journalist who has written extensively on issues related to the Greek diaspora.
5. Stefanos Manelis (1980-), a Greek professional basketball player who has played for several teams in the Greek Basket League.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Manelis
Among Census respondents with the surname Manelis, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Black (0.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%).
The bar chart below shows how Manelis 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 Manelis surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White97.5% · 115
- Black or African American0.8% · 1
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.8% · 1
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.8% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Manelis
Manelis 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
#143,149
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 116
+9 bearers (+8.4%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 330 places
2020
#143,511
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 118
+2 bearers (+1.7%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 362 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #142,819 | 107 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | +9 bearers (+8.4%) | Down 330 places |
| 2020 | #143,511 | 118 | 0.04 | +2 bearers (+1.7%) | Down 362 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 Manelis 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 | #143,149 | #143,511 | -0.3% |
| Count | 116 | 118 | 1.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -1.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Manelis bearers went from 116 to 118 (+1.7% change). The surname moved down 362 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #143,511.
FAQ
Manelis surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Manelis?
Name Census estimates that about 135 living Americans carry the surname Manelis. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,538,921 residents.
How common is Manelis?
Manelis ranks #143,511 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 118 people with the surname Manelis. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (135), 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 Manelis.
Has Manelis become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Manelis went from 116 recorded bearers to 118. That is an increase of 2 (+1.7%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #143,511.
What does the Census say about the background of Manelis?
Among Census respondents with the surname Manelis, the largest self-reported group is White at 97.5%. The next largest groups are Black (0.8%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Manelis in the 2020 Census, accounting for 97.5% (115 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Manelis appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (97.5%), Black (0.8%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.8%). 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 Manelis (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 Manelis mean?
A Greek surname likely derived from the given name Emmanuel. 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 Manelis (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 common is the surname Manelis?
Want to know how common the surname Manelis is? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.