2000
#149,328
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.04
Very Rare Last name
Ruschel
A German surname derived from the word "rusch," meaning rye or referring to rye growers.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 116 Americans carry the last name Ruschel. That puts it at #155,270 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,954,779 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Ruschel 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
116
1 in 2,954,779
Census rank
#155,270
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
101
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 101 bearers of the surname Ruschel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 155270th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Ruschel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Ruschel
The surname Ruschel is of German origin and dates back to the late 16th century. It originated in the southern German regions of Bavaria and Baden-Württemberg. The name is believed to be derived from the German word "rusch," meaning "rush" or "reed," which suggests that the earliest bearers of this name may have lived near or worked with reeds or rushes.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Ruschel name can be found in the parish records of the town of Murrhardt, located in the present-day German state of Baden-Württemberg. In these records, a man named Hans Ruschel is mentioned as a resident of the town in the late 1500s.
During the 17th and 18th centuries, the Ruschel name appeared in various historical documents and records across southern Germany. Notable individuals bearing this surname include Johannes Ruschel, a renowned theologian and professor at the University of Tübingen, who lived from 1635 to 1708.
In the 19th century, the Ruschel name gained prominence with the birth of Karl Ruschel in 1823. Karl was a German-born painter and sculptor who achieved significant recognition for his works depicting historical and mythological scenes.
Another notable figure with the Ruschel surname was Otto Ruschel, born in 1874 in Saxony. He was a successful entrepreneur and industrialist who founded the Ruschel Manufacturing Company, which produced precision tools and machinery.
Moving into the 20th century, the name Ruschel gained international recognition with the birth of Annemarie Ruschel in 1913. She was a German-born actress and film director who made significant contributions to the German film industry during the mid-20th century.
While the Ruschel name originated in southern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of Europe and beyond, with descendants of the original Ruschel families settling in various countries over the centuries.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Ruschel
Among Census respondents with the surname Ruschel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Ruschel 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 Ruschel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.1% · 95
- Hispanic or Latino3.0% · 3
- Two or more races2.0% · 2
- Black or African American1.0% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Ruschel
Ruschel 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
#144,141
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 115
+14 bearers (+13.9%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Up 5,187 places
2020
#155,270
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 101
-14 bearers (-12.2%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 11,129 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #149,328 | 101 | 0.04 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | +14 bearers (+13.9%) | Up 5,187 places |
| 2020 | #155,270 | 101 | 0.03 | -14 bearers (-12.2%) | Down 11,129 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 Ruschel 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 | #144,141 | #155,270 | -7.7% |
| Count | 115 | 101 | -12.2% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -15.5% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Ruschel bearers went from 115 to 101 (-12.2% change). The surname moved down 11,129 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #155,270.
FAQ
Ruschel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Ruschel?
Name Census estimates that about 116 living Americans carry the surname Ruschel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,954,779 residents.
How common is Ruschel?
Ruschel ranks #155,270 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.03 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 101 people with the surname Ruschel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (116), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.03 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.03 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 Ruschel.
Has Ruschel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Ruschel went from 115 recorded bearers to 101. That is a decrease of 14 (-12.2%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #155,270.
What does the Census say about the background of Ruschel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Ruschel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.1%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (3.0%) and Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Ruschel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.1% (95 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Ruschel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.1%), Hispanic (3.0%), Two or More Races (2.0%). 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 Ruschel (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 Ruschel mean?
A German surname derived from the word "rusch," meaning rye or referring to rye growers. 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 Ruschel (0.03 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 surname Ruschel?
HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, answers that with the living-bearer count in one glance.