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

Radel, 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 Radel surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Radel in America

Radel is the 15898th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Radel surname appeared 1,829 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 Radel.

We can also compare 2010 data for Radel 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 Radel

The surname Radel is believed to have originated in Germany during the Middle Ages. It is likely derived from the Old German word "rad," which means "wheel" or "wheel maker," suggesting that the name may have been an occupational surname given to those who worked as wheelwrights or cartwrights.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Radel can be found in the "Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae," a collection of historical documents from the Kingdom of Saxony, dated around the 13th century. In this document, a person named "Conradus Radel" is mentioned, suggesting that the name was already in use during that period.

The Radel surname was also present in other regions of Germany, with variations in spelling such as Rädel, Raedel, or Rädele. These variations likely emerged due to regional dialects and the lack of standardized spelling conventions at the time.

In the 16th century, a notable figure named Hans Radel (born around 1500) was a prominent architect and stonemason in the city of Nuremberg, Germany. He was responsible for designing and constructing several notable buildings, including the Peller-Haus and the Tucher-Haus.

Another historical figure with the surname Radel was Johann Radel (1590-1665), a German composer and organist who served as the Kapellmeister (music director) at the court of Duke Johann Casimir of Saxe-Coburg.

In the 18th century, Georg Radel (1712-1789) was a German publisher and bookseller who founded the publishing house "Radel'sche Verlagsbuchhandlung" in Leipzig, which played a significant role in the dissemination of literature and knowledge during the Enlightenment period.

Johann Gottlieb Radel (1764-1840) was a German botanist and professor of natural history at the University of Leipzig. He made significant contributions to the study of plant taxonomy and published several works on the flora of Germany.

While the Radel surname was predominantly found in Germany, it also spread to other parts of Europe and beyond through migration and immigration. However, it is important to note that the historical records and references mentioned above are limited to the earlier periods and may not reflect the more recent distribution and prevalence of the name.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Radel

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

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

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

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