The Wendell surname

In the 2010 U.S. Census, 4,020 people carried this name — #8,244 among all U.S. surnames, about 1 in every 73,500 people counted. That is up 5% from 3,822 in 2000.

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What the name means

The meaning of the Wendell surname

A surname originating as a patronymic.

Short form of Germanic compound names beginning with the tribal name Wendel-, "a Wend".

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary (en.wiktionary.org) — entry «Wendell» (English), by Wiktionary contributors · licensed CC BY-SA 4.0 (creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0) · excerpt, lightly adapted.

In the Nordic population registers

105 people named Wendell are counted in Finland and Sweden.

Sweden’s figure is from 31 December 2022, the last count Statistics Sweden published. Finland counts its citizens, at home or abroad.

Counted, by country

Finland (2026) 53
Sweden (2022) 52

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) · Digital and Population Data Services Agency (DVV), Finland, surname statistics, August 2026 — CC BY 4.0.

In the first U.S. census, 1790

54 families named Wendell, or a close spelling, were counted in 1790.

Each family is counted by its head. About 303 people lived in those households, 5.6 to a family on average. The table counts it together with 7 other spellings. The table lists white heads of families only, in the twelve states whose 1790 records survive; Virginia’s figures come from state lists of 1782–1785.

Families, by state

New York 24
Virginia 15
Massachusetts 6
Pennsylvania 5
North Carolina 2
New Hampshire 1
Maryland 1

U.S. Census Bureau, «A Century of Population Growth from the First Census of the United States to the Twelfth, 1790–1900» (Washington, 1909), table 111, p. 268 — public domain · names carried by at least 100 white persons in 1790.

In print

Wendell in American newspapers,
1912–1916.

Newspaper page from The Ogden Standard carrying the name Wendell
The Ogden Standard 1916-04-29
Newspaper page from The Ogden Standard carrying the name Wendell
The Ogden Standard 1916-03-11
Newspaper page from The Spanish American carrying the name Wendell
The Spanish American 1912-03-09

Chronicling America, Library of Congress — digitised newspapers in the public domain · 161,057 pages in all carry the name.

In print

Wendell in Australian newspapers,
1850s–1970s.

10,358 articles name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wendell. The most, 8,660, date from the 1940s. New South Wales has the most articles, but weighed against how much of each state’s press from the same decades has been digitised, the name stands out most in the Northern Territory, at 1.9 times its expected share.

Articles, by state

New South Wales 3,528
Queensland 2,563
Victoria 1,664
Western Australia 959
South Australia 852
Tasmania 558
ACT (Canberra) 128
Northern Territory 41

Trove, National Library of Australia (trove.nla.gov.au) · articles in its digitised newspapers that name a Mr, Mrs or Miss Wendell.

Who carried it

People named Wendell,
with a public archive behind them.

  • Jonas Wendell
    Jonas Wendell 1815–1873 · missionary
  • Marian Wendell Hubbard
    Marian Wendell Hubbard 1844–1933 · hymnwriter
  • Jeronimus Wendell 1655–
  • Harmanus Wendell Sr. 1678–1731 · alderman
  • Abraham Wendell 1678–1734
  • Harmanus Wendell Jr. 1714–1771 · merchant

Wikidata (CC0) · portraits via Wikimedia Commons, shown cropped, in the public domain or CC0 · 10 lives in all are documented under this name.

In the public record

People named Wendell,
in the records of 7 countries.

Soldiers, farmers, migrants and neighbours who carried the name and left a trace in public archives. Everyone shown here died long ago or was born more than a century ago.

United States586 records

586 records of the Wendell name in the United States
  • New York City birth, marriage and death certificates 206
  • U.S. Army enlistment records, World War II 161
  • New York State death index (outside NYC), 1957–2001 73
  • U.S. veterans' cemetery records, burials to 2001 71
  • Passenger arrivals in the United States, 1820–1912 51
  • U.S. alien registration index, 1940–1955 23
  • U.S. service members who died in the Korean War 1
  1. A United States Selective Service registration card, 1942
    Example: U.S. registration card, 1942
    Military record Royal P. Wendell

    Born 1915 in New York. Enlisted 1942 at Fort Niagara Youngstown; office clerk. U.S. Army Air Forces veteran of World War II; died 1996, buried at Chenango Valley Cemetery, Binghamton, New York.

    U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain); U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0)
  2. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Angela Wendell

    Arrived at New York in 1838 aboard the Formosa from Havre, aged 61; farmer. From Prussia, Germany.

    U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted)
  3. Names engraved on the Vietnam Veterans Memorial, Washington, D.C.
    Example: U.S. war memorial
    War record Raymond Dale Wendell

    Born 1930; from Stark County, Ohio. U.S. Army, light weapons infantryman; killed in action 1950 in North Korea.

    U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain)

Showing 3 of 586 records for Wendell in the United States.

Counts: NYC Department of Records & Information Services, Historical Vital Records (NYC Open Data) · U.S. National Archives, WWII Army Enlistment Records (public domain) · New York State Department of Health, Genealogical Research Death Index · U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs, Gravesite Locator (CC0) · U.S. National Archives, Castle Garden Immigration Center Collection, Ship Passenger Records (unrestricted) · U.S. National Archives, Flexoline Index Data File (public domain) · U.S. National Archives, Defense Casualty Analysis System (public domain). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. Selective Service registration card, 1942 (public domain); Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Vietnam Veterans Memorial, photo by U.S. Army Sgt. 1st Class Michael J. Carden, 2009 (public domain).

Australia28 records

28 records of the Wendell name in Australia
  • Victoria passenger lists, 1839–1923 17
  • Queensland State Archives indexes 10
  • Victoria wills and probate, deaths to 2001 1
  1. A passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, arriving at New York in 1903
    Example: passenger manifest, 1903
    Passenger record Louise Wendell

    Arrived in Queensland in 1910 aboard the Oswestry Grange, aged 40.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A petition to the probate court of St. Louis, 1848
    Example: probate petition, 1848
    Probate record Henry Wendell

    Former rlwy employee of W Brunswick, Victoria; died 1959.

    Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Civil record George Fedrick Wendell

    Naturalised in Queensland in 1900.

    Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0)

Showing 3 of 28 records for Wendell in Australia.

Counts: Public Record Office Victoria (CC BY 4.0) · Queensland State Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Passenger manifest of the S.S. St. Paul, New York, 1903 (public domain); Petition to the probate court, St. Louis, 1848, Missouri Historical Society (public domain); Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0).

Canada19 records

19 records of the Wendell name in Canada
  • City of Waterloo (Ontario) cemetery records 14
  • Nova Scotia Archives name indexes 5
  1. A page of the Berlin civil register, 1880
    Example: civil register, 1880
    Death record Herbert Wendell

    Died 1913 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.
  2. Fairview Lawn Cemetery in Halifax, Nova Scotia
    Example: Canadian cemetery
    Burial record Caroline Wendell

    Buried in 1932 at Mount Hope Cemetery, Waterloo, Ontario.

    Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence
  3. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Benjamin L. Wendell

    Married 1908 in Halifax, Nova Scotia.

    Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia.

Showing 3 of 19 records for Wendell in Canada.

Counts: Contains information provided by the City of Waterloo under licence · Nova Scotia Archives. Contains information licensed under the Open Government Licence - Nova Scotia. Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Civil register, Berlin, 1880, Landesarchiv Berlin (CC0); Fairview Lawn Cemetery, Halifax, photo by Edgar El (CC BY 3.0); Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Finland3 records

3 records of the Wendell name in Finland Finland's war dead, 1914–1922
  1. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record Eetu Kallenp Wendell

    Born 1871 in Ruovesi; labourer. Died in 1918 in Tampere, one of the dead of Finland's wars of 1914–1922.

    Kansallisarkisto, via Sotasurmasampo (CC BY 4.0)
  2. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record Anders Artur Wendell

    Born 1890; labourer. Died in 1918, one of the dead of Finland's wars of 1914–1922.

    Kansallisarkisto, via Sotasurmasampo (CC BY 4.0)
  3. A page of the Livre d’or of the French war dead, Paris
    Example: roll of the war dead
    War record Urho Edvard Wendell

    Born 1895 in Teisko; labourer. Died in 1918 in Tampere, one of the dead of Finland's wars of 1914–1922.

    Kansallisarkisto, via Sotasurmasampo (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Kansallisarkisto, via Sotasurmasampo (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Livre d’or of the war dead, Paris, Ministère des pensions, Archives nationales (CC0).

Germany2 records

2 records of the Wendell name in Germany Germany's First World War casualty lists, 1914–1919
  1. A page of the German First World War casualty lists, 18 April 1918
    Example: German casualty list, 1918
    Casualty list Johannes Wendell

    From Berlin. Reported wounded in the Prussian casualty list of 19 April 1916 (Grenadier Regiment No. 8).

    Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0)

Showing 1 of 2 records for Wendell in Germany.

Counts: Verein für Computergenealogie e.V. (2026). Deutsche Verlustlisten des Ersten Weltkriegs – Datensammlung (Version 1.0), DOI 10.5281/zenodo.18330751 (CC0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Deutsche Verlustlisten, Prussian list 1116, 18 April 1918 (scan via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 3.0).

Netherlands1 record

1 record of the Wendell name in the Netherlands Dutch church registers before 1811
  1. A marriage entry in the civil register of Tilburg, 1911
    Example: marriage register, 1911
    Marriage record Jan Claassen Wendell

    Married in 1705 in Nijmegen.

    Open Archives, Regionaal Archief Nijmegen (CC BY 4.0)

Counts: Open Archives (CC BY 4.0). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: Marriage register, Tilburg, 1911, Regionaal Archief Tilburg (public domain).

Norway1 record

1 record of the Wendell name in Norway Norway's 1910 census
  1. A page of the 1910 United States census, Milwaukee
    Example: U.S. census, 1910
    Census record Emelie Ferdinanda Wendell

    Census of 1910: Mathisensgate, Lillehammer; born 1827 in Gøteborg.

    Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO)

Counts: Arkivverket, Digitalarkivet, 1910 census (CC BY 3.0 NO). Example pages, not the records of the people shown: U.S. census of 1910, Milwaukee (public domain).

Nearby in the index

Surnames next to Wendell.

When the index is not enough

This page says where Wendell 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.

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