2000
#28,522
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 787
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.29
Very Rare Last name
Proehl
A variant spelling of the German surname Proehle, derived from a nickname for a squire or bailiff.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 886 Americans carry the last name Proehl. That puts it at #32,001 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.26 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 386,856 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Proehl 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
886
1 in 386,856
Census rank
#32,001
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
773
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 773 bearers of the surname Proehl in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.26 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 32001st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Proehl, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.3%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Proehl
The surname Proehl originated in the German region of Prussia in the 16th century. It is derived from the Old German word "prohl," which means "boastful" or "arrogant." The name may have been initially given as a nickname to someone with a boastful or arrogant demeanor.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the surname Proehl can be found in the parish records of the town of Danzig (now Gdańsk, Poland) in the late 1500s. The name is also found in various historical documents and records from the region of East Prussia during this time period.
In the 17th century, the Proehl name appears in the records of the town of Königsberg (now Kaliningrad, Russia), which was a major city in East Prussia. One notable individual with this surname was Johann Proehl, a merchant and landowner who lived in Königsberg in the late 1600s.
As the Proehl family spread throughout Prussia and other parts of Germany over the centuries, various spelling variations emerged, such as Prohl, Proehl, and Proehle. Some of these variations may have been influenced by regional dialects or changes in spelling conventions over time.
In the 19th century, a branch of the Proehl family settled in the town of Tilsit (now Sovetsk, Russia), which was also located in East Prussia. One famous individual from this branch was Hermann Proehl (1820-1891), a German writer and journalist who was known for his works on the history and culture of East Prussia.
Another notable person with the surname Proehl was Karl Proehl (1875-1949), a German architect and urban planner who was born in Danzig. He is best known for his work in the design and development of the city of Frankfurt am Main in the early 20th century.
While the Proehl name originated in Prussia and was primarily concentrated in the German regions of East Prussia and Pomerania, over time it has spread to other parts of Germany and beyond, as families migrated and settled in new areas.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Proehl
Among Census respondents with the surname Proehl, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.3%).
The bar chart below shows how Proehl 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 Proehl surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.9% · 726
- Two or more races3.6% · 28
- Hispanic or Latino1.3% · 10
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 5
- Black or African American0.5% · 4
Timeline
Historical Census data for Proehl
Proehl 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
#30,339
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 771
-16 bearers (-2.0%)
Per 100,000 0.26
Rank movement Down 1,817 places
2020
#32,001
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 773
+2 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.26
Rank movement Down 1,662 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #28,522 | 787 | 0.29 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #30,339 | 771 | 0.26 | -16 bearers (-2.0%) | Down 1,817 places |
| 2020 | #32,001 | 773 | 0.26 | +2 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 1,662 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 Proehl 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 | #30,339 | #32,001 | -5.5% |
| Count | 771 | 773 | 0.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.26 | 0.26 | -0.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Proehl bearers went from 771 to 773 (+0.3% change). The surname moved down 1,662 positions in the national ranking, going from #30,339 to #32,001.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Proehl
FAQ
Proehl surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Proehl?
Name Census estimates that about 886 living Americans carry the surname Proehl. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 386,856 residents.
How common is Proehl?
Proehl ranks #32,001 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.26 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 773 people with the surname Proehl. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (886), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.26 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.26 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 Proehl.
Has Proehl become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Proehl went from 771 recorded bearers to 773. That is an increase of 2 (+0.3%). In the national ranking it fell from #30,339 to #32,001.
What does the Census say about the background of Proehl?
Among Census respondents with the surname Proehl, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.9%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.6%) and Hispanic (1.3%). 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 Proehl in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.9% (726 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Proehl appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.9%), Two or More Races (3.6%), Hispanic (1.3%). 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 Proehl (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 Proehl mean?
A variant spelling of the German surname Proehle, derived from a nickname for a squire or bailiff. 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 Proehl (0.26 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 Americans have the surname Proehl?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.