2000
#127,186
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 124
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.05
Very Rare Last name
Sockel
A German surname derived from the word "Sockel," meaning a base or pedestal.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 128 Americans carry the last name Sockel. That puts it at #147,954 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.04 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,677,768 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Sockel 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
128
1 in 2,677,768
Census rank
#147,954
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
112
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 112 bearers of the surname Sockel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.04 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 147954th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Sockel, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Sockel
The surname Sockel is of German origin, deriving from the Middle Low German word "sockel," meaning "base" or "pedestal." The name likely originated in the northern regions of Germany during the late medieval period, around the 14th or 15th century.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the Sockel name can be found in the Bürgerbuch (Citizen's Book) of the city of Hamburg, dated 1497, where a certain Hans Sockel is mentioned as a resident. This suggests that the name was already well-established in the region by that time.
Throughout the 16th and 17th centuries, the Sockel name appeared in various historical records across northern Germany, particularly in the regions of Lower Saxony and Schleswig-Holstein. Some notable individuals bearing this surname during this period include Johannes Sockel (1567-1631), a Lutheran theologian and professor at the University of Rostock, and Henning Sockel (1592-1649), a merchant and alderman in the city of Lübeck.
In the 18th century, the Sockel name spread to other parts of Germany, including the kingdom of Prussia. One prominent figure was Carl Friedrich Sockel (1717-1788), a Prussian government official and economist who served as the director of the Royal Prussian Mint in Berlin.
As the Industrial Revolution gained momentum in the 19th century, many Sockel families migrated to urban centers in search of employment opportunities. One such individual was Friedrich Wilhelm Sockel (1832-1901), a successful industrialist and entrepreneur who founded the Sockel Iron Works in the city of Dortmund.
Another notable bearer of the Sockel name was Karl Sockel (1873-1947), a German architect and urban planner who played a significant role in the reconstruction efforts following World War II. His most famous work is the redesign of the city center of Düsseldorf, which incorporated modern architectural styles while preserving historical elements.
While the Sockel surname has its roots firmly planted in northern Germany, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and displacement, particularly during the 20th century. However, the name's origins can be traced back to the medieval German word "sockel," reflecting its connection to the region's linguistic and cultural heritage.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Sockel
Among Census respondents with the surname Sockel, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Sockel 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 Sockel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White95.5% · 107
- Hispanic or Latino2.7% · 3
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.9% · 1
- Two or more races0.9% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Sockel
Sockel 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
#145,220
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 114
-10 bearers (-8.1%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 18,034 places
2020
#147,954
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 112
-2 bearers (-1.8%)
Per 100,000 0.04
Rank movement Down 2,734 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #127,186 | 124 | 0.05 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #145,220 | 114 | 0.04 | -10 bearers (-8.1%) | Down 18,034 places |
| 2020 | #147,954 | 112 | 0.04 | -2 bearers (-1.8%) | Down 2,734 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 Sockel 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 | #145,220 | #147,954 | -1.9% |
| Count | 114 | 112 | -1.8% |
| Per 100K | 0.04 | 0.04 | -6.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Sockel bearers went from 114 to 112 (-1.8% change). The surname moved down 2,734 positions in the national ranking, going from #145,220 to #147,954.
FAQ
Sockel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Sockel?
Name Census estimates that about 128 living Americans carry the surname Sockel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,677,768 residents.
How common is Sockel?
Sockel ranks #147,954 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.04 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 112 people with the surname Sockel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (128), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.04 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.04 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 Sockel.
Has Sockel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Sockel went from 114 recorded bearers to 112. That is a decrease of 2 (-1.8%). In the national ranking it fell from #145,220 to #147,954.
What does the Census say about the background of Sockel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Sockel, the largest self-reported group is White at 95.5%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.7%) and Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Sockel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 95.5% (107 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Sockel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (95.5%), Hispanic (2.7%), Asian/Pacific Islander (0.9%). 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 Sockel (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 Sockel mean?
A German surname derived from the word "Sockel," meaning a base or pedestal. 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 Sockel (0.04 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 Sockel?
Want to know how many people have the last name Sockel? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.