The Pelen surname
In the 2010 U.S. Census, 123 people carried this name — #136,449 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 2,500,000 people counted. That is up 15% from 107 in 2000.
In France’s civil register
France’s register of deaths holds 90 people named Pelen.
1 of them were born outside France. Those born in France came from 11 départements, most often Bouches-du-Rhône.
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 Switzerland’s population statistics
30 people named Pelen live in Switzerland.
They live in 6 of Switzerland’s 26 cantons, most of all in Bern.
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 Pelen,
with a public archive behind them.
-
Pierre Pelen 1911–1993 · diplomat
-
Olivier Pelen 1949– · diplomat
-
Perrine Pelen 1960– · alpine skier
Wikidata (CC0).
Nearby in the index
Surnames next to Pelen.
- Pelas 125 · U.S. census
- Pelayo 8,402 · U.S. census
- Pelc 1,003 · U.S. census
- Pelchat 693 · U.S. census
- Pele 329 · U.S. census
- Pelegrin 393 · U.S. census
- Pelican 367 · U.S. census
- Pelini 143 · U.S. census
- Pelissier 607 · U.S. census
- Pellas 109 · U.S. census
- Pelle 800 · U.S. census
- Pellegrin 2,080 · U.S. census
When the index is not enough
This page says where Pelen 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.