# Israel (surname)

Source: https://namelineage.com/surname/israel/  
Publisher: Name Lineage. Counts from the US Census Bureau; origin and etymology from Wiktionary; bearers from Wikidata. Data updated 2026-11-11.

A surname.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Latin |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 10,245 |
| US rank (2010) | 3,488 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 30,136 people |
| Change since 2000 | +9.0% (9,401 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈɪz.ɹeɪl/, 3 syllables |
| Variant spellings | Isreal, Yisrael, Israhel |

## Etymology

From Middle English Israel, from Old English, borrowed from Latin Israel, from Ancient Greek Ἰσραήλ (Israḗl), from Hebrew יִשְׂרָאֵל (yisra'él, “Israel”). In the Bible, it is said to be from the name יִשְׂרֶה אֵל (yisré 'él) given to Jacob in Genesis 32:29, after which his descendants came to be known as Israelites and their land as the "kingdom/land of Israel". The personal name, already attested in Eblaite 𒅖𒊏𒅋 (iš-ra-il) and Ugaritic 𐎊𐎌𐎗𐎛𐎍 (yšrỉl), has been variously translated as "he wrestles with God", "he prevails with God", or "God rules" (possibly from the same root ש־ר־ה/ש־ר־ר as שָׂרָה (“Sarah”)). Line 27 of the Merneptah Stele (from about 1200 B.C.E.) is thought to contain the earliest attestation of the name Israel in any language, Egyptian ysrjꜣr. : i-i-z:Z1s*Z1s:r-i-A-r:Z1*T14-A1*B1:Z2 Doublet of Yisroel.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Israel in the 2010 US Census by the Census's own race and ethnicity groups. The Census suppresses a share when the count behind it is small.

| Group | Share |
|---|---|
| White (not Hispanic) | 70% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 20% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 4.6% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 3.1% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.8% |
| Two or more races | 1.8% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Israel in the United States and Uruguay.

## People named Israel

- Lee Israel, American author and forger (1939-2014)
- Neal Israel, American director, producer and writer
- Rubén Israel, association football coach
- Mel Allen, American sports announcer (1913–1996)

## Similar surnames

Israelson.

## How to read these numbers

A Census count is people alive and counted in 2010, not births, and names occurring fewer than 100 times are not published at all. Ethnicity shares are the Census's own categories.