2000
#114,166
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 142
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sentel
A topographic surname derived from a French placename, possibly referring to someone who lived near a path or trail.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 114 Americans carry the last name Sentel. That puts it at #156,005 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.03 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 3,006,617 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sentel 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
114
1 in 3,006,617
Census rank
#156,005
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
99
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 99 bearers of the surname Sentel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.03 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 156005th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sentel, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Black (3.0%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sentel
The surname SENTEL originated in Germany during the late 12th century. It is derived from the Old German word "sentel", which means a path or trail. The name was likely first adopted by someone who lived near a prominent path or trail.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the SENTEL name appears in the Codex Diplomaticus Saxoniae, a collection of historical documents from Saxony, Germany, dated around 1220. This document references a "Henricus Sentel" who was a landowner near the town of Meissen.
During the 13th and 14th centuries, variations of the SENTEL name began appearing in other parts of Germany, such as Sentelius, Sentelmann, and Senteler. These variations likely indicated different regional dialects or occupations associated with the name.
In the 15th century, the SENTEL name started to spread beyond Germany. Records show a Johannes Sentel living in the Netherlands around 1450, and a William Sentel residing in England in the late 1400s.
Notable individuals with the SENTEL surname throughout history include:
1. Konrad Sentel (c. 1480-1537), a German painter and printmaker known for his woodcut illustrations.
2. Hans Sentel (1548-1621), a German mathematician and astronomer who made advancements in the field of trigonometry.
3. Maria Sentel (1628-1701), a German composer and organist who is credited with writing some of the earliest known solo organ works.
4. Christoph Sentel (1772-1849), a German engineer and inventor who developed an early steam-powered locomotive.
5. Alois Sentel (1891-1975), an Austrian historian and author who wrote extensively about the history of the Austro-Hungarian Empire.
The SENTEL name has also been associated with various place names over the centuries, such as Sentelbach, a small town in Bavaria, Germany, and Sentellingen, a village in the Netherlands.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sentel
Among Census respondents with the surname Sentel, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Black (3.0%).
The bar chart below shows how Sentel 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 Sentel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White80.8% · 80
- Two or more races9.1% · 9
- Black or African American3.0% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native3.0% · 3
- Hispanic or Latino2.0% · 2
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.0% · 2
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sentel
Sentel 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
-27 bearers (-19.0%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 29,975 places
2020
#156,005
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 99
-16 bearers (-13.9%)
Per 100,000 0.03
Rank movement Down 11,864 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #114,166 | 142 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #144,141 | 115 | 0.04 | -27 bearers (-19.0%) | Down 29,975 places |
| 2020 | #156,005 | 99 | 0.03 | -16 bearers (-13.9%) | Down 11,864 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 Sentel 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 | #156,005 | -8.2% |
| Count | 115 | 99 | -13.9% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.03 | -17.2% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sentel bearers went from 115 to 99 (-13.9% change). The surname moved down 11,864 positions in the national ranking, going from #144,141 to #156,005.
FAQ
Sentel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sentel?
Name Census estimates that about 114 living Americans carry the surname Sentel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 3,006,617 residents.
How common is Sentel?
Sentel ranks #156,005 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 99 people with the surname Sentel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (114), 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 Sentel.
Has Sentel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sentel went from 115 recorded bearers to 99. That is a decrease of 16 (-13.9%). In the national ranking it fell from #144,141 to #156,005.
What does the Census say about the background of Sentel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sentel, the largest self-reported group is White at 80.8%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (9.1%) and Black (3.0%). 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 Sentel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 80.8% (80 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sentel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (80.8%), Two or More Races (9.1%), Black (3.0%). 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 Sentel (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 Sentel mean?
A topographic surname derived from a French placename, possibly referring to someone who lived near a path or trail. 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 Sentel (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 last name Sentel?
You can see how many people are called Sentel on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org — same data roots, lighter UI.