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

Pels, 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 Pels surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Pels in America

Pels is the 63873rd most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Pels surname appeared 312 times in the 2010 census and if you were to sample 100,000 people in the United States, approximately 0 people would have the surname Pels.

We can also compare 2010 data for Pels 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 Pels

The surname Pels has its origins in the Netherlands, with records of the name dating back to the 16th century. It is believed to have derived from the Dutch word "pel," which translates to "peel" or "skin," suggesting that the name may have originally referred to an occupation such as a tanner or leather worker.

One of the earliest recorded mentions of the surname Pels can be found in the Dutch municipal records of the city of Leiden, where a certain Adriaen Pels was listed as a resident in 1587. Another notable early record is the appearance of a Jan Pels in the baptismal records of the Reformed Dutch Church in New Amsterdam (present-day New York City) in 1639, indicating that the name had already made its way to the Dutch colonies in the New World by the mid-17th century.

During the 17th and 18th centuries, the surname Pels was particularly prevalent in the provinces of Holland and Zeeland, as well as in the major cities of Amsterdam and Rotterdam. Some historical figures bearing this name include the Dutch poet and playwright Andries Pels (1631-1681), who is best known for his satirical works criticizing the excesses of the Dutch Golden Age society.

Another notable figure was Adriaan Pels (1786-1863), a Dutch businessman and philanthropist who made his fortune in the textile industry and was a prominent supporter of various charitable causes in Amsterdam. In the field of art, the Dutch painter Jan Pels (1834-1898) gained recognition for his landscapes and genre scenes depicting everyday life in the Netherlands.

Moving into the 20th century, the name Pels is associated with the Dutch engineer and inventor Hendrik Pels (1890-1964), who is credited with several innovations in the field of refrigeration technology, including the development of the first household refrigerator with a compressor-driven cooling system.

Another notable figure was the Dutch theologian and philosopher Andries Pels-Rijcken (1908-1993), who was a prominent advocate for Christian existentialism and a leading figure in the Dutch Reformed Church during the latter half of the 20th century.

While the surname Pels has its roots in the Netherlands, it has since spread to other parts of the world, particularly through emigration and migration. However, the historical records and notable figures mentioned above demonstrate the rich heritage and significance of this surname within the Dutch cultural and historical context.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Pels

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

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

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

Reference this page

We spend a lot of resources downloading, cleaning, merging, and formatting the data that is shown on the site.

If you found the data or information on this page useful in your research, please use the tool below to properly cite or reference Name Census as the source. We appreciate your support!