Wendell
Old English masculine name meaning "wanderer" or "one who journeys."
Name Census estimates that about 30,632 living Americans carry the first name Wendell. It is a predominantly male name (99.0% of registrations). The average person named Wendell today is around 61 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Wendell births was 1940 (1,650 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Wendell. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
Key insights
- • Although Wendell is used almost entirely for boys, the SSA data does show 567 girls registered with the name since 1880.
- • Compared to the 1950s, recent registration numbers for Wendell have dropped to less than 5% of what they once were.
People living today
31K
~ 1 in 11,189 Americans
Peak year
1940
1,650 babies that year
Average age
61
years old
2024 SSA rank
#2,068
Tracked since 1880
Census
Wendell in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 28,295 people with the first name Wendell, which placed it at #1,302 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#1,302
National first-name rank
People counted
28K
28,295 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
9.4
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
60.1% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Wendell
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wendell is White at 60.1%. The next largest groups are Black (30.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Wendell 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 name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Wendell at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White60.1% · 17,013
- Black or African American30.9% · 8,740
- Two or more races2.9% · 827
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.8% · 781
- Hispanic or Latino2.1% · 604
- American Indian and Alaska Native1.2% · 330
Gender
Gender distribution for Wendell
Wendell leans heavily male at 99.0% of total registrations, but 567 girls have also been registered with the name over the years, giving it a small but present crossover presence.
Wendell as a male name
- Ranked #2,068 in 2024
- 73 male births in 2024
- Peak: 1940 (1,625 births)
Wendell as a female name
- Ranked #17,835 in 2019
- 5 female births in 2019
- Peak: 1940 (25 births)
2020 Census snapshot
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wendell appears almost entirely male. Of the 28,292 people counted with this name, 99.0% were male and only a very small share were female.
Popularity
Wendell: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Wendell from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1950s, with 10,039 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1950s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Wendell by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Wendell during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Wendells live
The SSA's state-level files cover 48 states and territories. Texas, Georgia, Kentucky recorded the most babies named Wendell, while Rhode Island, Delaware, Montana recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 1,014 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Wendell
The name Wendell originated from the Germanic language and culture. It is derived from the Old Germanic words "wend", meaning to go or wander, and "hild", meaning battle. The combination of these words suggests that Wendell was originally a name given to a wandering warrior or traveler.
In the early Middle Ages, the name Wendell was prevalent among the Frankish and Saxon tribes of Western and Central Europe. It was often spelled as "Wendil" or "Wendel" in various historical records from the 6th to 9th centuries.
One of the earliest recorded references to the name Wendell can be found in the Fulda Sacramentary, a liturgical book from the 10th century. This document mentions a monk named Wendell who served in the Benedictine abbey in Fulda, Germany.
Throughout history, several notable individuals have borne the name Wendell. One of the most famous was Wendell Phillips (1811-1884), an American abolitionist, advocate for Native American rights, and orator during the 19th century. He was a prominent figure in the anti-slavery movement and played a crucial role in the struggle for racial equality.
Another notable Wendell was Wendell Willkie (1892-1944), an American businessman and politician who was the Republican nominee for President of the United States in 1940. Although he lost the election to Franklin D. Roosevelt, he gained respect for his principled opposition to the isolationist movement and his support for aid to Britain during World War II.
In the literary world, Wendell Berry (born 1934) is an acclaimed American novelist, poet, environmental activist, and farmer. His works often explore the themes of agrarianism, sustainable living, and the importance of preserving rural communities and traditions.
Wendell Holmes (1809-1894) was an American physician, professor, lecturer, and writer. He is best known for his work in the field of medicine, but also gained recognition for his writings, including poetry and essays on various topics.
Finally, Wendell Rodricks (1960-2020) was an Indian fashion designer and activist who played a significant role in promoting the Indian fashion industry on a global scale. He was known for his innovative designs that blended traditional Indian aesthetics with contemporary styles.
These are just a few examples of notable individuals throughout history who have carried the name Wendell, a name that has endured for centuries and continues to be used across various cultures and regions.
Notable bearers
Famous people named Wendell
People
Wendell + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Wendell as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with W
Other first names starting with W with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Wendell: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Wendell?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 30,632 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Wendell going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 11,189 US residents.
Is Wendell a common name?
We classify Wendell as "Uncommon". It ranks above 98.8% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 54,263 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Wendell most popular?
The single biggest year for Wendell was 1940, when 1,650 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Wendell is about 61 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Wendell in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 28,295 people with the name Wendell, or 9.37 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #1,302 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Wendell in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Wendell?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Wendell appears almost entirely male. Of the 28,292 people counted with this name, 99.0% were male and only a very small share were female. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Wendell?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Wendell is White at 60.1%. The next largest groups are Black (30.9%) and Two or More Races (2.9%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Wendell most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Wendell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 60.1% (17,013 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Wendell in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Wendell a male name?
Yes, 99.0% of people registered as Wendell in the SSA data are male. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Wendell still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Wendell in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Wendell can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How common is the name Wendell?
For a quick modern take, check how many people share the name Wendell on our sister site HowManyOfMe.org.