2000
#104,819
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 158
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.06
Very Rare Last name
Mergele
A surname denoting someone from the German town of Mergeln.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 171 Americans carry the last name Mergele. That puts it at #121,931 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.05 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 2,004,411 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Mergele 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
171
1 in 2,004,411
Census rank
#121,931
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.0
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
149
very rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 149 bearers of the surname Mergele in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.05 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 121931st position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Mergele, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Mergele
The surname Mergele originates from the German region of Bavaria, dating back to the 16th century. It is derived from the German word "mergel," which means "marl" or a type of soil rich in clay and calcium carbonate. This suggests that the name may have been initially associated with individuals involved in agriculture or related occupations.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Mergele can be found in the parish records of the town of Neuburg an der Donau in Bavaria, where a Johann Mergele was mentioned in 1586. Another early reference is a document from 1612 that mentions a Hans Mergele from the village of Eggolsheim, near Forchheim.
In the late 17th century, the name appears in various church records from the regions around Regensburg and Bamberg. For instance, a Maria Mergele was born in Regensburg in 1687, while a Michael Mergele was baptized in Bamberg in 1699.
Notable individuals with the surname Mergele include Johann Georg Mergele (1741-1822), a German painter and engraver from Bamberg, known for his religious paintings and etchings. Another prominent figure was Franz Xaver Mergele (1819-1892), a German Catholic theologian and professor at the University of Würzburg.
In the 19th century, the name Mergele also appeared in records from the region of Franconia, which was part of the Kingdom of Bavaria at the time. For example, there is a record of a Johann Mergele born in Bamberg in 1842, and a Maria Mergele from the town of Fürth, who was born in 1856.
Other individuals with this surname include Karl Mergele (1864-1937), a German artist and illustrator from Nuremberg, known for his etchings and woodcuts depicting rural life and landscapes. Additionally, there was a Wilhelm Mergele (1875-1945), a German Catholic priest and theologian who served as a professor at the University of Würzburg.
The name Mergele has also been associated with various place names in Bavaria, such as the village of Mergelsbach near Nuremberg, which likely derived its name from the same root word as the surname, referring to the local soil or terrain.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Mergele
Among Census respondents with the surname Mergele, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%).
The bar chart below shows how Mergele 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 Mergele surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White81.9% · 122
- Hispanic or Latino10.1% · 15
- Two or more races3.4% · 5
- Asian and Pacific Islander2.7% · 4
- Black or African American1.3% · 2
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.7% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Mergele
Mergele 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
#116,829
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 149
-9 bearers (-5.7%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 12,010 places
2020
#121,931
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 149
+0 bearers (+0.0%)
Per 100,000 0.05
Rank movement Down 5,102 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #104,819 | 158 | 0.06 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #116,829 | 149 | 0.05 | -9 bearers (-5.7%) | Down 12,010 places |
| 2020 | #121,931 | 149 | 0.05 | +0 bearers (+0.0%) | Down 5,102 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 Mergele 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 | #116,829 | #121,931 | -4.4% |
| Count | 149 | 149 | 0.0% |
| Per 100K | 0.05 | 0.05 | -0.3% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Mergele bearers went from 149 to 149 (+0.0% change). The surname moved down 5,102 positions in the national ranking, going from #116,829 to #121,931.
FAQ
Mergele surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Mergele?
Name Census estimates that about 171 living Americans carry the surname Mergele. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 2,004,411 residents.
How common is Mergele?
Mergele ranks #121,931 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Very Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.05 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 149 people with the surname Mergele. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (171), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.05 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.05 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 Mergele.
Has Mergele become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Mergele went from 149 recorded bearers to 149. That is an increase of 0 (+0.0%). In the national ranking it fell from #116,829 to #121,931.
What does the Census say about the background of Mergele?
Among Census respondents with the surname Mergele, the largest self-reported group is White at 81.9%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (10.1%) and Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Mergele in the 2020 Census, accounting for 81.9% (122 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Mergele appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (81.9%), Hispanic (10.1%), Two or More Races (3.4%). 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 Mergele (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 Mergele mean?
A surname denoting someone from the German town of Mergeln. 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 Mergele (0.05 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 Mergele?
See how many people have the surname Mergele on HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site built around that single question.