Mandel
A surname with several possible roots, most commonly a German nickname or occupational name tied to almonds or commerce.
The #5,212 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 46,061 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Mandel is a name with more than one plausible origin. In German it can relate to mandel, meaning “almond,” and so may have begun as a nickname, a trade term, or a house-name linked to almonds or almond-growing. In Jewish use, it may also reflect Yiddish or German forms of the same word, and in some cases it can be an ornamental or adopted surname rather than a single inherited occupational name.
History
The surname appears in both German-speaking and Jewish naming traditions, which makes a single derivation hard to assign in every family line. In some cases it may have been influenced by place-names containing Mandel, while in others it was likely adopted because it sounded pleasant or evocative. Modern bearers are found widely in Germany, the United States, and other countries with German or Jewish diaspora communities.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
The same German word behind Mandel also survives in modern words like “almond” in several related European languages.
From the historical record
“Manto: Mante; Mandt — Mende. Vklf. (1): Mandel — Mändl — Mentel. (k) Mendicho: Mandtke. (z) Manzo : Manx — Mentx — Mense. (z + 1): Menxel. Manger III. ahd. mangäri, mhd. mangaere vom lat mango „Händler".”
— Die deutschen Familiennamen