2000
#14,680
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,857
First available Census row
Per 100,000 0.69
Rare Last name
Weibel
An occupational surname derived from "Weibel" meaning bailiff or constable.
According to the 2020 US Census Bureau surname tables, roughly 2,111 Americans carry the last name Weibel. That puts it at #15,346 in the national surname ranking, appearing at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 people (about 1 in 162,366 residents).
This page is the full Name Census profile for the Weibel 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
2.1K
1 in 162,366
Census rank
#15,346
2020 decennial data
Per 100,000
0.6
Frequency rate
Recorded bearers
1.8K
rare in the US
Popularity narrative
The Census Bureau recorded 1,841 bearers of the surname Weibel in its 2020 decennial surname file. At a rate of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, it holds the 15346th position in the national surname ranking.
Among Census respondents with the surname Weibel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
Origin
Meaning and origin of Weibel
The surname Weibel originated in Germany and Switzerland during the Middle Ages. It is derived from the Old High German word 'wibal', meaning 'a bailiff' or 'an official'. The name likely referred to a person who held a position of authority or administrative responsibility within a feudal estate or village.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Weibel can be found in the Codex Traditionum Ecclesiae Ravennatensis, a manuscript dating back to the 11th century, which mentions a certain 'Weibelo' who lived in the region of Ravenna, Italy. This suggests that the name had already spread beyond its original German and Swiss roots by that time.
In the 13th century, there are records of a family named Weibel residing in the town of Bremgarten, near Zurich, Switzerland. This family is believed to have been among the first to adopt Weibel as a hereditary surname, as opposed to a descriptive occupational title.
The name Weibel is also closely associated with the city of Wil, in the canton of St. Gallen, Switzerland. In the 15th century, a prominent figure named Hans Weibel (1435-1508) served as the mayor of Wil and played a significant role in the city's affairs during that period.
Another notable individual with the surname Weibel was Johann Rudolph Weibel (1679-1738), a Swiss theologian and author who wrote extensively on religious and philosophical topics. His works were widely read and influential in the Protestant circles of his time.
In the 19th century, a German artist named Johann Baptist Weibel (1808-1882) gained recognition for his landscape paintings, particularly those depicting scenes from the Black Forest region of Germany, where he was born and spent much of his life.
The name Weibel has also been associated with various places and geographic features throughout Europe. For instance, there is a village called Weibelbach in the German state of Rhineland-Palatinate, which likely derives its name from the surname or its root word. Similarly, there is a Weibelstrasse (Weibel Street) in the Swiss city of Zurich, indicating the presence of Weibel families in that area over time.
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Weibel
Among Census respondents with the surname Weibel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%).
The bar chart below shows how Weibel 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 Weibel surname at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White94.0% · 1,730
- Hispanic or Latino2.6% · 48
- Two or more races2.5% · 46
- Asian and Pacific Islander0.5% · 9
- Black or African American0.3% · 5
- American Indian and Alaska Native0.2% · 3
Timeline
Historical Census data for Weibel
Weibel 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
#15,978
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,817
-40 bearers (-2.2%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Down 1,298 places
2020
#15,346
National surname rank
Recorded bearers 1,841
+24 bearers (+1.3%)
Per 100,000 0.62
Rank movement Up 632 places
| Year | Rank | Count | Per 100K | Count change | Rank change |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2000 | #14,680 | 1,857 | 0.69 | First available Census row | First available Census row |
| 2010 | #15,978 | 1,817 | 0.62 | -40 bearers (-2.2%) | Down 1,298 places |
| 2020 | #15,346 | 1,841 | 0.62 | +24 bearers (+1.3%) | Up 632 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 Weibel 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 | #15,978 | #15,346 | 4.0% |
| Count | 1,817 | 1,841 | 1.3% |
| Per 100K | 0.62 | 0.62 | -0.7% |
Between the 2010 and 2020 Census, the number of Weibel bearers went from 1,817 to 1,841 (+1.3% change). The surname moved up 632 positions in the national ranking, going from #15,978 to #15,346.
FAQ
Weibel surname: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. have the surname Weibel?
Name Census estimates that about 2,111 living Americans carry the surname Weibel. Using the current population baseline, that works out to roughly 1 in 162,366 residents.
How common is Weibel?
Weibel ranks #15,346 in the 2020 Census surname tables and is classified on this site as "Rare." The Census recorded the name at a frequency of 0.62 per 100,000 residents, which is about 1 people out of every 100,000.
How many people with this surname were counted in the Census?
The raw 2020 Census file counted 1,841 people with the surname Weibel. That is different from the site's living-bearer estimate (2,111), which projects the surname's present-day count by applying the Census frequency rate to the current U.S. population.
What does 0.62 per 100,000 actually mean?
It is the Census Bureau's normalized frequency measure. A rate of 0.62 per 100,000 means that if you picked a random group of 100,000 U.S. residents, you would expect about 1 of them to have the surname Weibel.
Has Weibel become more or less common over time?
Between 2010 and 2020, the surname Weibel went from 1,817 recorded bearers to 1,841. That is an increase of 24 (+1.3%). In the national ranking it rose from #15,978 to #15,346.
What does the Census say about the background of Weibel?
Among Census respondents with the surname Weibel, the largest self-reported group is White at 94.0%. The next largest groups are Hispanic (2.6%) and Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Weibel in the 2020 Census, accounting for 94.0% (1,730 people in the source table).
What is the full ancestry breakdown?
Weibel appears across multiple self-reported groups in the Census data. The largest shares in the 2020 file are White (94.0%), Hispanic (2.6%), Two or More Races (2.5%). 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 Weibel (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 Weibel mean?
An occupational surname derived from "Weibel" meaning bailiff or constable. 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 Weibel (0.62 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 surname Weibel?
For a quick modern estimate, our sister site HowManyOfMe.org answers that in one glance, with the living-bearer count front and centre.