2000
#14,823
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,835
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.68
Rare Last name
Marcel
A French surname derived from the Roman name Marcellus or the given name Marcel.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,258 Americans carry the last name Marcel. That puts it at #14,552 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.66 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 151,796 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Marcel 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.
For British records, Name Census UK has a British surname profile for Marcel with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
2.3K
1 in 151,796
Census rank
#14,552
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.7
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
2.0K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,969 bearers of the surname Marcel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.66 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 14552nd position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Marcel, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.0%) and Hispanic (9.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Marcel
The surname Marcel originated in France during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Latin name Marcellus, which itself comes from the Roman family name Marcius or Marcus. Marcel was a widespread name in France from an early period, appearing in various forms such as Marceau, Marçau, and Marsault.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Marcel can be found in the Domesday Book, a manuscript survey of England commissioned by William the Conqueror in 1086. Here, a landowner named Marcel is listed as holding lands in Gloucestershire.
In the 12th century, a French troubadour and poet named Arnaut Marcel gained recognition for his works written in the Occitan language. He lived from around 1150 to 1225 and hailed from the region of Quercy in southern France.
During the 13th century, the name Marcel was associated with several notable individuals. Pierre Marcel, born around 1200, was a French scholar and theologian who served as the Chancellor of the University of Paris. Another Pierre Marcel, born in 1281, was a French prelate and diplomat who became the Bishop of Arras.
The 14th century saw the rise of Étienne Marcel, a prominent Parisian bourgeois and revolutionary figure. Born around 1310, he played a significant role in the early stages of the Hundred Years' War and led an uprising against the French monarchy in 1358.
In the 15th century, the name Marcel was linked to several places in France, such as the commune of Marcel in the Indre department and the town of Saint-Marcel in the Ardèche department.
Notable individuals with the surname Marcel throughout history include:
1. Claude Marcel (1793-1876), a French lawyer and politician.
2. Étienne Marcel (1310-1358), the Parisian bourgeois and revolutionary leader mentioned earlier.
3. Gabriel Marcel (1889-1973), a renowned French philosopher and Christian existentialist.
4. Jacques Marcel (1793-1850), a French scientist and inventor who contributed to the development of early photography.
5. Pierre Marcel (1281-1362), the French prelate and diplomat mentioned earlier.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Marcel
Among Census respondents with the surname Marcel, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.0%) and Hispanic (9.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Marcel 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 Marcel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White61.1% · 1,204
- Black or African American24.0% · 473
- Hispanic or Latino9.5% · 188
- Two or more races3.2% · 63
- Asian and Pacific Islander1.2% · 23
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.9% · 18
Timeline
Historical Census data for Marcel
Marcel 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
#15,898
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,829
-6 bearers (-0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 1,075 places
2020
#14,552
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,969
+140 bearers (+7.7%)
Per 100,000 0.66
Rank movement Up 1,346 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,823 | 1,835 | 0.68 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,898 | 1,829 | 0.62 | -6 bearers (-0.3%) | Down 1,075 places |
| 2020 | #14,552 | 1,969 | 0.66 | +140 bearers (+7.7%) | Up 1,346 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 Marcel 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 | #15,898 | #14,552 | 8.5% |
| Count | 1,829 | 1,969 | 7.7% |
| Per 100K | 0.62 | 0.66 | 6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Marcel bearers went from 1,829 to 1,969 (+7.7% change). The surname moved up 1,346 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,898 to #14,552.
FAQ
Marcel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Marcel?
Name Census estimates that about 2,258 living Americans carry the surname Marcel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 151,796 residents.
How common is Marcel?
Marcel ranks #14,552 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.66 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 1,969 people with the surname Marcel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,258), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.66 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.66 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 Marcel.
Has Marcel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Marcel went from 1,829 recorded bearers to 1,969. That is an increase of 140 (+7.7%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,898 to #14,552.
What does the Census say about the background of Marcel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Marcel, the largest self-reported group is White at 61.1%. The next largest groups are Black (24.0%) and Hispanic (9.5%). 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 Marcel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 61.1% (1,204 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Marcel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (61.1%), Black (24.0%), Hispanic (9.5%). 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 Marcel (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 Marcel mean?
A French surname derived from the Roman name Marcellus or the given name Marcel. 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 Marcel (0.66 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 Americans have the surname Marcel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.