2000
#19,537
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,278
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.47
Rare Last name
Neagle
A surname derived from a nickname referring to someone with a prominent or hooked nose.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,307 Americans carry the last name Neagle. That puts it at #23,050 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.38 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 262,245 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Neagle 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 Neagle with 1881 census detail, origin facts and modern UK distribution where available.
Bearers in the US
1.3K
1 in 262,245
Census rank
#23,050
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.4
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.1K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,140 bearers of the surname Neagle in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.38 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 23050th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Neagle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Neagle
The surname NEAGLE is of English origin, deriving from the medieval English word "neghe," meaning "nigh" or "near." It likely originated as a topographic name, given to someone who lived near a prominent landmark or geographical feature.
In its earliest recorded forms, the name appeared as "atte Neghe" and "de la Neghe" in various 13th and 14th century records, such as the Hundredorum Rolls of 1273 and the Court Rolls of the Manor of Wakefield in 1315. These early spellings suggest the name may have originated in the counties of Yorkshire or Lancashire.
The NEAGLE surname can also be traced back to place names like Neagh in County Antrim, Ireland, and Neagh Hill in Derbyshire, England. It's possible that some bearers of the name adopted it from these locations.
One of the earliest recorded individuals with the NEAGLE surname was John Neagle, a merchant and alderman who lived in the city of York in the late 15th century. Another early bearer was William Neagle, who was mentioned in the Pipe Rolls of Gloucestershire in 1524.
In the 16th and 17th centuries, the name appeared in various spellings, including Negle, Negill, and Neagell, reflecting the inconsistencies of English spelling during that period. Notable individuals from this time include Thomas Neagle (1548-1623), a wealthy landowner and member of the gentry in Shropshire, and John Neagle (1635-1718), a Quaker minister and writer from Pennsylvania.
During the 18th and 19th centuries, the NEAGLE surname spread throughout the English-speaking world, with bearers of the name found in Britain, Ireland, North America, and Australia. Some notable figures from this period include John Neagle (1796-1865), an American portrait painter known for his depictions of prominent political and cultural figures, and Sir Michael Neagle (1819-1895), a British Royal Navy officer and explorer who surveyed parts of the Arctic and Antarctic regions.
Throughout its history, the NEAGLE surname has been borne by individuals from various walks of life, including merchants, landowners, religious figures, artists, and military officers. Its origins can be traced back to medieval England, where it likely originated as a descriptive name for someone living near a specific landmark or geographical feature.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Neagle
Among Census respondents with the surname Neagle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%).
The bar chart below shows how Neagle 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 Neagle surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.3% · 1,018
- Two or more races4.2% · 48
- Hispanic or Latino3.2% · 36
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.6% · 18
- Black or African American1.2% · 14
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 6
Timeline
Historical Census data for Neagle
Neagle 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
#20,458
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,298
+20 bearers (+1.6%)
Per 100,000 0.44
Rank movement Down 921 places
2020
#23,050
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,140
-158 bearers (-12.2%)
Per 100,000 0.38
Rank movement Down 2,592 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #19,537 | 1,278 | 0.47 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #20,458 | 1,298 | 0.44 | +20 bearers (+1.6%) | Down 921 places |
| 2020 | #23,050 | 1,140 | 0.38 | -158 bearers (-12.2%) | Down 2,592 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 Neagle 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 | #20,458 | #23,050 | -12.7% |
| Count | 1,298 | 1,140 | -12.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.44 | 0.38 | -13.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Neagle bearers went from 1,298 to 1,140 (-12.2% change). The surname moved down 2,592 positions in the national ranking, going from #20,458 to #23,050.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Neagle
FAQ
Neagle surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Neagle?
Name Census estimates that about 1,307 living Americans carry the surname Neagle. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 262,245 residents.
How common is Neagle?
Neagle ranks #23,050 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.38 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 1,140 people with the surname Neagle. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,307), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.38 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.38 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 Neagle.
Has Neagle become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Neagle went from 1,298 recorded bearers to 1,140. That is a decrease of 158 (-12.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #20,458 to #23,050.
What does the Census say about the background of Neagle?
Among Census respondents with the surname Neagle, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.3%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (4.2%) and Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Neagle in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.3% (1,018 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Neagle appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.3%), Two or More Races (4.2%), Hispanic (3.2%). 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 Neagle (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 Neagle mean?
A surname derived from a nickname referring to someone with a prominent or hooked nose. 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 Neagle (0.38 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 Neagle?
For a faster, more casual read, check HowManyOfMe.org — our sister site built around that single question.