2000
#24,386
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 962
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.36
Rare Last name
Rydell
A surname derived from a Swedish place name containing "ryd" meaning a clearing.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 1,023 Americans carry the last name Rydell. That puts it at #28,435 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.30 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 335,048 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Rydell 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
1.0K
1 in 335,048
Census rank
#28,435
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.3
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
892
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 892 bearers of the surname Rydell in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.30 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 28435th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Rydell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Rydell
The surname Rydell is of Swedish origin, deriving from the Old Swedish word "rydell," which means a clearing or a small open space in a forest. This name likely emerged in the medieval period, around the 12th or 13th century, when Swedish settlers began establishing farms and settlements in forested areas, clearing small patches of land for cultivation and habitation.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Rydell can be found in the Svenskt Diplomatarium, a collection of medieval Swedish charters and documents dating back to the 13th century. In this collection, there are references to individuals with the surname Rydell or variations such as Rydelsson, indicating their connection to a particular clearing or settlement.
The name Rydell is closely associated with several place names in Sweden, such as Rydell (a farm in Småland), Rydellsäng (a meadow in Västergötland), and Rydellsholm (an island in Bohuslän). These place names likely served as the basis for the surname, as it was common for people to adopt surnames derived from their place of origin or residence.
Notable individuals with the surname Rydell include:
1. Gustaf Rydell (1734-1786), a Swedish composer and organist known for his contributions to the Swedish church music tradition.
2. Nils Rydell (1795-1868), a Swedish painter and art teacher who played a significant role in the development of Swedish landscape painting.
3. Jöns Rydell (1832-1896), a Swedish politician and member of the Riksdag (Swedish parliament) from 1867 to 1896.
4. Viktor Rydell (1828-1895), a Swedish author and translator known for his works on Swedish folklore and mythology.
5. Emilia Rydell (1826-1892), a Swedish writer and advocate for women's rights, who published several novels and short stories exploring gender roles and societal norms.
While the surname Rydell has its roots in Sweden, it has since spread to other parts of the world through migration and diaspora communities. However, its origins can be traced back to the Swedish countryside and the clearing of forested areas for settlement and agriculture during the medieval period.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rydell
Among Census respondents with the surname Rydell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (1.9%).
The bar chart below shows how Rydell 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 Rydell surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White93.4% · 833
- Two or more races3.7% · 33
- Hispanic or Latino1.9% · 17
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.6% · 5
- Black or African American0.3% · 3
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.1% · 1
Timeline
Historical Census data for Rydell
Rydell 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
#25,572
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 965
+3 bearers (+0.3%)
Per 100,000 0.33
Rank movement Down 1,186 places
2020
#28,435
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 892
-73 bearers (-7.6%)
Per 100,000 0.30
Rank movement Down 2,863 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #24,386 | 962 | 0.36 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #25,572 | 965 | 0.33 | +3 bearers (+0.3%) | Down 1,186 places |
| 2020 | #28,435 | 892 | 0.30 | -73 bearers (-7.6%) | Down 2,863 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 Rydell 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 | #25,572 | #28,435 | -11.2% |
| Count | 965 | 892 | -7.6% |
| Per 100K | 0.33 | 0.30 | -9.6% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Rydell bearers went from 965 to 892 (-7.6% change). The surname moved down 2,863 positions in the national ranking, going from #25,572 to #28,435.
Notable bearers
Famous people with the surname Rydell
FAQ
Rydell surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Rydell?
Name Census estimates that about 1,023 living Americans carry the surname Rydell. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 335,048 residents.
How common is Rydell?
Rydell ranks #28,435 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.30 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 892 people with the surname Rydell. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (1,023), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.3 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.30 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 Rydell.
Has Rydell become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Rydell went from 965 recorded bearers to 892. That is a decrease of 73 (-7.6%). In the national ranking it fell from #25,572 to #28,435.
What does the Census say about the background of Rydell?
Among Census respondents with the surname Rydell, the largest self-reported group is White at 93.4%. The next largest groups are Two or More Races (3.7%) and Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Rydell in the 2020 Census, accounting for 93.4% (833 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Rydell appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (93.4%), Two or More Races (3.7%), Hispanic (1.9%). 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 Rydell (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 Rydell mean?
A surname derived from a Swedish place name containing "ryd" meaning a clearing. 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 Rydell (0.30 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 Americans have the surname Rydell?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.