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

Schmahl, 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 Schmahl surname is from the 2010 census data.

Popularity of Schmahl in America

Schmahl is the 34539th most popular name in America based on the data we have collected from the U.S. Census Bureau.

The Schmahl surname appeared 655 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 Schmahl.

We can also compare 2010 data for Schmahl 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 Schmahl

The surname Schmahl is of German origin, with the earliest recorded instances dating back to the late 15th century. It is believed to have originated from the Middle High German word "smal," meaning "narrow" or "slender." This suggests that the name may have been initially used as a descriptive nickname for a person with a lean or thin physique.

The surname Schmahl was primarily concentrated in the regions of Bavaria and Franconia in southern Germany. Its variations in spelling included Schmal, Schmall, and Schmale, reflecting the regional dialects and linguistic variations at the time. One of the earliest known references to the name can be found in the "Matriculation Books" of the University of Heidelberg, where a student named Johannes Schmahl was enrolled in 1489.

During the 16th and 17th centuries, the Schmahl name appeared in various historical records and documents across German-speaking territories. In 1582, a man named Hans Schmahl was recorded as a resident of the town of Rothenburg ob der Tauber, a well-preserved medieval city in Bavaria. Additionally, in the parish records of the town of Bamberg, a certain Georg Schmahl was listed as a baptismal sponsor in 1621.

One notable figure bearing the Schmahl surname was Johann Schmahl, a German theologian and philosopher who lived from 1535 to 1617. He served as a professor at the University of Marburg and was an influential thinker during the Protestant Reformation era.

Another individual of note was Carl Friedrich Schmahl, a German jurist and legal scholar who lived from 1789 to 1845. He held the position of a judge and authored several works on German civil law, contributing significantly to the legal discourse of his time.

In the realm of literature, the name Schmahl is associated with the German author and playwright Gustav Schmahl, who was born in 1856 and died in 1935. He was known for his satirical works and comedies that reflected the social and cultural dynamics of late 19th century Germany.

Furthermore, the Schmahl surname has been connected to various place names within Germany, such as Schmahlenegg, a small village in Bavaria, and Schmahlingen, a town in the state of Baden-Württemberg. These place names may have influenced the spelling variations and geographical distribution of the surname over time.

While the Schmahl surname may not be among the most widely recognized German names today, its historical roots and references provide insight into the cultural and linguistic diversity of the German-speaking regions, reflecting the rich tapestry of surnames that have emerged from different regions and eras.

Race and ethnic origin of people with the last name Schmahl

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

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

If you have a correction or suggestion to improve the history of Schmahl, 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!