The Pal surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 3,844 people carried this name — #8,570 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 76,900 people counted. That is up 75% from 2,196 in 2000.
Where the name comes from
The origin of the Pal surname
From pal, palec, or palić.
From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Pal» (Polish), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.
In Poland’s population register
629 people named Pal have a registered home in Poland.
Of the 828 in Poland’s national register, these are the ones with a permanent address on file. They live in 15 of Poland’s 16 voivodeships, most of all in Silesian.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
PESEL register, Ministry of Digital Affairs of Poland (dane.gov.pl) — CC0 · living people by voivodeship of permanent residence, 20 January 2026.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
189 people named Pal live in Switzerland.
They live in 12 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Zurich.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Swiss Federal Statistical Office (FSO), «Surnames of the permanent resident population by canton», 2025, opendata.swiss/en/dataset/nachnamen-der-standigen-wohnbevolkerung-nach-kanton3 · names with fewer than 3 bearers in a canton are not published.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 184 people named Pal live in Argentina.
RENAPER only publishes a name in a province when more than ten people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Buenos Aires Province.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 124 people named Pal.
37 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 20 départements, most often Haute-Loire.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 42 people named Pal live in Belgium.
Statbel only publishes a name in a municipality when five or more people there share it, so the real number is higher. Most of them live in Liège.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In the Nordic population registers
184 people named Pal is counted in Sweden.
Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published.
Counted, by country
Own calculations based on data from Statistics Sweden (SCB), surnames with at least two bearers, 31 December 2022 — CC BY 4.0 (names with 20 or more bearers shown).
In print
Pal in American newspapers,
1909–1919.
Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 1,858,237 pages in all carry the name.
Who carried it
People named Pal,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Jakob Pal 1863–1936 · university teacher -
Jakob Pal 1863–1936 · university teacher
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Ame Pal 1350– · monarch
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Betty Pal 1874–1940
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Srish Pal 1887–1939 · revolutionary
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Gopeshwar Pal 1892–1944 · potter
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Pal.
- Paita 146 · U.S. census
- Pajak 1,352 · U.S. census
- Pajon 184 · U.S. census
- Pajor 416 · U.S. census
- Pajot 147 · U.S. census
- Pakula 493 · U.S. census
- Pala 623 · U.S. census
- Palacio 8,400 · U.S. census
- Palacios 43,798 · U.S. census
- Paladini 230 · U.S. census
- Palama 185 · U.S. census
- Palamara 372 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Pal is.
A volume says what happened to it.
Every page in the index is free and stays free. The Heritage Volume is the long form: the full paper trail, the arms, the crossing — bound, and yours.