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

Mikel, 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 Mikel surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Mikel in America

Mikel is the 12370th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Mikel surname appeared 2,514 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 1 people would have the surname Mikel.

We can also compare 2010 data for Mikel 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 Mikel

The surname Mikel has its origins in the European nation of Germany, with records dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the German personal name "Michael", which itself comes from the Hebrew name "Mikhael", meaning "who is like God". The name was likely adopted as a surname by individuals who were named Michael or those who had ancestors with that given name.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Mikel can be found in the Kirchenbücher (church records) of Saxony, where a Johannes Mikel was listed in 1567. Another early mention comes from the town of Mülheim an der Ruhr, where a Hans Mikel was documented in 1582.

In the 17th century, the surname Mikel began to spread beyond the borders of Germany, with records showing individuals bearing the name in neighboring countries such as the Netherlands and Switzerland. One notable example is the Swiss theologian and philosopher Johann Mikel (1615-1681), who was born in Basel and made significant contributions to the field of Protestant theology.

The 18th century saw the emergence of several notable individuals with the surname Mikel. One such figure was the German composer and organist Johann Friedrich Mikel (1737-1805), who was renowned for his works in the Baroque and Classical styles. Another was the Dutch painter and engraver Jan Mikel (1753-1825), whose landscapes and cityscapes were highly regarded during his lifetime.

As the 19th century dawned, the Mikel surname continued to spread across Europe and beyond. One prominent individual was the German-born American businessman and philanthropist Frederick Mikel (1818-1901), who made his fortune in the brewing industry and later became a significant benefactor to various charitable causes in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Throughout the 20th century, several notable individuals bore the Mikel surname, including the German author and playwright Günter Mikel (1928-2015), whose works explored themes of identity and societal change in post-war Germany. Another noteworthy figure was the American mathematician and computer scientist Donald Mikel (1940-2022), who made significant contributions to the field of cryptography and was recognized for his work in developing secure communication systems.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Mikel

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

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

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

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