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

Scheel, 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 Scheel surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Scheel in America

Scheel is the 9289th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Scheel surname appeared 3,504 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 Scheel.

We can also compare 2010 data for Scheel 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 Scheel

The surname Scheel originated in Germany, dating back to the medieval period. It is derived from the Old German word "schele," which means "squint-eyed" or "cross-eyed." This suggests that the name was initially a nickname given to someone with this physical characteristic.

One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Scheel can be found in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae Regiae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, where a person named Conradus Schele was mentioned in the year 1288. Additionally, the name appears in the Württembergisches Urkundenbuch, a collection of charters and documents from the German state of Württemberg, where a certain Hanns Schele was recorded in 1382.

In the 15th century, the surname Scheel was associated with a noble family from Pomerania, a historical region in northern Germany and western Poland. This family produced several notable figures, including Albrecht von Scheel (1430-1490), who served as the Bishop of Havelberg, and Eggert von Scheel (1470-1541), a military commander and diplomat.

Another prominent individual bearing the surname Scheel was Joachim Scheel (1519-1594), a German jurist and statesman who served as the Chancellor of Saxony-Lauenburg. He played a crucial role in the establishment of the University of Helmstedt and the codification of Saxon law.

During the 17th century, the name Scheel was also found in the records of the Dutch Republic. One notable bearer was Gijsbert van Scheel (1609-1678), a Dutch admiral who participated in several naval battles against the English and the French during the Anglo-Dutch Wars.

In the 19th century, a prominent figure with the surname Scheel was August Wilhelm Scheel (1781-1846), a German theologian and philologist. He served as the rector of the University of Tübingen and made significant contributions to the study of Old German literature.

Throughout history, the surname Scheel has also been associated with various places and geographical locations, such as Scheelingen (a town in Germany), Scheelfelde (a village in Saxony-Anhalt, Germany), and Scheelesee (a lake in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, Germany).

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Scheel

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

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

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

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