Explore the Family Name Karels

The meaning of Karels

Dutch and Luxembourgish: patronymic from the personal name Karel. This surname is also found in northern Germany. Compare Carels, Carrels, and Karrels.

Dictionary of American Family Names, 2nd edition, © Oxford University Press, 2022.

How common is the last name Karels in the United States?

Based on the Decennial U.S. Census data, the surname Karels saw a slight increase in popularity from 2000 to 2010. In 2000, it was ranked as the 28,088th most popular surname, while in 2010, it climbed to the rank of 27,732, marking a 1.27% rise in its popularity. The count of individuals bearing this surname also increased by approximately 8%, with a total of 803 people in 2000 and 867 people in 2010. However, the proportion of individuals with this surname per 100,000 fell by 3.33%.

	2000	2010	Change
Rank	#28,088	#27,732	1.27%
Count	803	867	7.97%
Proportion per 100k	0.3	0.29	-3.33%

Race and Ethnicity of people with the last name Karels

In terms of ethnic identity, the Decennial U.S. Census data reveals that the majority of people with the surname Karels identify as white, making up 96.51% of the total in 2000 and 95.50% in 2010. During this decade, there were minor shifts observed among other ethnic groups. While the percentage of Karels identifying as Asian/Pacific Islander or American Indian and Alaskan Native was negligible in 2000, by 2010 about 0.92% identified as Asian/Pacific Islander. The representation of those identifying with two or more races slightly decreased from 1.87% to 1.73%. The Hispanic population also saw a small decrease. It's worth noting that no individuals with the surname Karels identified as Black during either census year.

	2000	2010	Change
White	96.51%	95.5%	-1.05%
Two or More Races	1.87%	1.73%	-7.49%
Asian/Pacific Islander	0%	0.92%	0%
Hispanic	0.75%	0.69%	-8%
Black	0%	0%	0%
American Indian and Alaskan Native	0.62%	0%	0%