Given name & surname · also Hebrew
Mendel
“a learned man”
Mendel is used as a given name and a surname. One interpretation is “a learned man.”
Meaning & origin
What it means
One interpretation is “a learned man.”
Where it comes from
An origin associated with this spelling is Hebrew.
How it developed
In German usage, Mendel is a diminutive of Menachem. In English usage, Mendel as a surname developed from מאַן.
The story
Published U.S. birth records include this spelling as early as 1912. This is the earliest published observation available here, rather than a date for the name’s origin.
From dated birth records
Mendel through the years
- Babies since 1880
- 2,942
- 2,942 boys · 0 girls
- Most popular year
- 2024
- 114 babies
- 2025
- 86
- #1,846 for boys
- 2021–25 vs 2016–20
- +33%
- Rising
Where it’s given
By the numbers
In 2025, this name appeared in 86 U.S. birth records for boys, ranking No. 1,846 among boys’ names. Average annual use for boys was 33.0% higher in 2021–2025 than in 2016–2020. In 2025, New York had the largest reported state-level birth count for boys with this name (74). Published U.S. population figures for this spelling include 2,071 as a first name in 2020; 2,341 as a surname in 2020.
From Social Security birth records and U.S. Census name counts for this exact spelling. Other spellings are counted separately.
Mendel’s family of names
In German usage, Mendel is a diminutive of Menachem. In English usage, Mendel as a surname developed from מאַן. Mendel has a related form in Mendell.
Inner ring: nicknames and forms · outer: across languages.
Around the world
Mendel has relatives in 4 languages. Lines run from its Hebrew roots to each of them.
14 related names in 4 languages. Point at a dot, or tab to the map and use the arrow keys.
Nicknames & forms 21
Diminutives, pet forms, short forms and variants used alongside the name.
- Menachemfull form · Czech, English
- Mandelvariant · English, German
- Mendellvariant
- Mendeleighvariant
- Mendeleavariant
- Mendeleevariant
- Mendelievariant
- Mendelivariant
Show 13 moreShow fewer
Across languages 2
Equivalents and cognates in other languages, plus older forms it grew from.
See also 1
Names our sources mention alongside this one. They are related in story or meaning, not forms of this name.
People named Mendel
- Mendel Jackson DavisAmerican politician (1942-2007)
- Mendel GrossmanPolish photographer (1913-1945)
- Mendel KhatayevichSoviet politician (1893–1937)
- Mendel PortugaliFounder of Hashomer1888–1917
- Mendel Levin NathansonDanish merchant, author and contributing editor1780–1868
Listed by how widely each person is written about, which says nothing about the name itself.
Similar names
If you love Mendel, these share its style, era, origin or sound, from outside its own family.
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“king of righteousness”
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“God has helped”
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