# Joel (surname)

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

A surname from Hebrew.

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Origin | Hebrew |
| Type | not recorded |
| People in the US (2010 Census) | 1,426 |
| US rank (2010) | 19,087 of 162,253 |
| How often | about 1 in every 216,512 people |
| Change since 2000 | +17% (1,224 in 2000) |
| Pronunciation | /ˈd͡ʒoʊ(ə)l/, 2 syllables |
| Variant spellings | none recorded |

## Etymology

From Hebrew יוֹאֵל (yo'él, “Yahweh (is) God”). As a medieval French and English given name, it is also from Breton Judicaël (related to Joyce and Jocelyn). Cf. Elijah.

## Who carries it

Share of people named Joel 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) | 61% |
| Black (not Hispanic) | 12% |
| Hispanic or Latino (any race) | 9.5% |
| Asian and Pacific Islander | 15% |
| American Indian and Alaska Native | 0.6% |
| Two or more races | 2.7% |

## Where

Wikidata records people named Joel in the United States.

## People named Joel

- Billy Joel, American singer, songwriter, and pianist (born 1949)
- Alexa Ray Joel, American singer
- Amos E. Joel, Jr., American electrical engineer
- Robert Joel, American actor (1944-1992)

## Similar surnames

Jolly, Jolley, Joly, Joyal, Johal, Jewell, Jalloh, Juhl, Julio, Julia, July.

## 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.