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

Michael, 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 Michael surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Michael in America

Michael is the 847th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Michael surname appeared 40,736 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 14 people would have the surname Michael.

We can also compare 2010 data for Michael 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 Michael

The surname Michael is an English, Scottish, and German surname derived from the Hebrew personal name Michael, which means "who is like God?". This name was borne by one of the archangels in the Bible. The name first appeared in England after the Norman Conquest of 1066, brought over by Norman settlers.

In England, the earliest recorded bearer of the surname was Radulfus filius Michael, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Lincolnshire in 1176. The name also appeared in the Hundred Rolls of Bedfordshire in 1273, with the spelling Michel. Some early variations of the spelling included Michell, Mitchel, and Mitchell.

In Scotland, the surname Michael can be traced back to the 13th century. One of the earliest recorded bearers was Michael de Mernyn, who was mentioned in the Ragman Rolls of 1296, which were a series of homage rolls for King Edward I of England.

The surname Michael can also be found in Germany, where it originated as a patronymic surname derived from the personal name Michael. One of the earliest recorded instances was in the town of Lübeck in 1292, where a man named Heinricus Michael was mentioned in the town records.

Some notable historical figures with the surname Michael include:

1. Sir John Michael (c. 1508 - 1551), an English politician and Member of Parliament.
2. Johann Michael (1572 - 1619), a German composer and organist.
3. Francis Michael (1750 - 1828), an English writer and philosopher.
4. John Michael (1804 - 1886), an English clergyman and author.
5. William Michael (1846 - 1920), an American politician and lawyer who served as the 27th Governor of South Carolina.

The surname Michael has also been associated with various place names, such as Michael's Church in Hertfordshire, England, and the village of Michaelston-le-Pit in Monmouthshire, Wales.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Michael

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

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

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

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