The Pauwels surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 489 people carried this name — #44,034 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 588,200 people counted. That is up 20% from 409 in 2000.
In Belgium’s population register
At least 12,015 people named Pauwels 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 Antwerp.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they live today
Statbel (Statistics Belgium), family names of the population by municipality, 1 January 2026 — CC BY 4.0.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 862 people named Pauwels.
66 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 39 départements, most often Nord.
Where it concentrates, on the mapWhere they were born
Fichier des personnes décédées, INSEE — Licence Ouverte 2.0 · deaths recorded in France since 1970, by place of birth.
In Argentina’s national register
At least 105 people named Pauwels 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.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where they live today
RENAPER (National Registry of Persons, Argentina), surnames of residents by province, December 2021 — CC BY 4.0.
In Switzerland’s population statistics
32 people named Pauwels live in Switzerland.
They live in 7 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Vaud.
Too few records to say where it concentrates region by region — these are plain counts, not shares.
Where 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.
Who carried it
People named Pauwels,
with a public archive behind them.
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Joseph Pauwels 1818–1876 · painter -
Joseph Pauwels 1819–1876 · painter
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Félix Pauwels 1820–1877 · architect -
Ferdinand Pauwels 1830–1904 · painter -
François Pauwels 1754–1828 · politician
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Antoine Pauwels 1796–1852 · politician
Wikidata and Wikimedia Commons (CC0) · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Pauwels.
When the index is not enough
This page says where Pauwels 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.