2000
#121,780
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 131
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Odehnal
A Czech surname derived from the verb "odehnat" meaning "to drive away" or "to expel".
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 127 Americans carry the last name Odehnal. That puts it at #148,665 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,698,853 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Odehnal 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
127
1 in 2,698,853
Census rank
#148,665
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
111
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 111 bearers of the surname Odehnal in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 148665th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Odehnal, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Odehnal
The surname ODEHNAL is of Czech origin, originating in the regions of Bohemia and Moravia in the present-day Czech Republic. The name likely emerged in the late medieval period, around the 13th or 14th century.
ODEHNAL is derived from the Czech verb "odehnat," which means "to drive away" or "to repel." It is believed to have been an occupational surname, initially referring to a person who worked as a drover, herding and driving away livestock or other animals.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name ODEHNAL can be found in the records of the town of Litomyšl, in eastern Bohemia, dating back to the 15th century. The name is also mentioned in the Bohemian land registers from the 16th century, indicating its widespread use in the region during that time.
In the early 17th century, a notable bearer of the name was Jan ODEHNAL, a farmer and landowner from the village of Horní Studénky in Moravia. His son, Jakub ODEHNAL, born in 1627, was a respected member of the local community and served as a village elder.
During the 18th century, the ODEHNAL surname appeared in various records across Bohemia and Moravia, including the town chronicles of Vysoké Mýto and the parish registers of Litomyšl. One prominent figure from this period was Václav ODEHNAL (1712-1789), a merchant and town councilor in the town of Pardubice.
In the 19th century, the ODEHNAL surname gained further recognition with the birth of Josef ODEHNAL (1826-1898), a Czech writer, journalist, and patriot. He was a vocal advocate for Czech nationalism and played a significant role in the Czech National Revival movement.
Other notable bearers of the ODEHNAL surname include Karel ODEHNAL (1879-1949), a Czech artist and painter known for his landscapes and portraits, and Jaroslav ODEHNAL (1906-1978), a Czech composer and music educator who contributed to the development of Czech classical music.
While the ODEHNAL surname is predominantly found in the Czech Republic, it has also spread to other parts of the world through migration, particularly in the late 19th and early 20th centuries when many Czechs emigrated to countries like the United States, Canada, and Argentina.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Odehnal
Among Census respondents with the surname Odehnal, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%).
The bar chart below shows how Odehnal 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 Odehnal surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White89.2% · 99
- Hispanic or Latino7.2% · 8
- Two or more races3.6% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Odehnal
Odehnal 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
-15 bearers (-11.5%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 21,369 places
2020
#148,665
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 111
-5 bearers (-4.3%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 5,516 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #121,780 | 131 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #143,149 | 116 | 0.04 | -15 bearers (-11.5%) | Down 21,369 places |
| 2020 | #148,665 | 111 | 0.04 | -5 bearers (-4.3%) | Down 5,516 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 Odehnal 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 | #148,665 | -3.9% |
| Count | 116 | 111 | -4.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -7.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Odehnal bearers went from 116 to 111 (-4.3% change). The surname moved down 5,516 positions in the national ranking, going from #143,149 to #148,665.
FAQ
Odehnal surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Odehnal?
Name Census estimates that about 127 living Americans carry the surname Odehnal. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,698,853 residents.
How common is Odehnal?
Odehnal ranks #148,665 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 111 people with the surname Odehnal. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (127), 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 Odehnal.
Has Odehnal become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Odehnal went from 116 recorded bearers to 111. That is a decrease of 5 (-4.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #143,149 to #148,665.
What does the Census say about the background of Odehnal?
Among Census respondents with the surname Odehnal, the largest self-reported group is White at 89.2%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (7.2%) and Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Odehnal in the 2020 Census, accounting for 89.2% (99 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Odehnal appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (89.2%), Hispanic (7.2%), Two or More Races (3.6%). 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 Odehnal (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 Odehnal mean?
A Czech surname derived from the verb "odehnat" meaning "to drive away" or "to expel". 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 Odehnal (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 many people have the last name Odehnal?
See how common the surname Odehnal is on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.