Manuel
A surname of biblical origin, usually meaning “son of Emanuel” or “God is with us.”
The #1,277 most common surname in the United States (2010 Census) — about 1 in every 11,215 Americans shares it.
Etymology
Manuel is generally a shortened or variant form of the biblical name Emanuel/Immanuel, meaning “God is with us.” In surname use, it was often taken as a patronymic: “the son of Emanuel.” Some older English surname writers also treated Manuel as an altered or shortened form of other names such as Manwell, while noting that it is relatively uncommon in England.
History
Bardsley describes Manuel as a rare English surname that entered later than many older native surnames, with early records in the 15th and 16th centuries. Lower likewise treats it as an ancient personal name, though he also mentions a separate possible confusion with Mandeville/Manwaring in older forms. The surname has also remained in use as a given name and family name across several languages, especially where biblical naming was common.
Origin
Regions
Variant spellings
Fun fact
Early English records cited by Bardsley include forms like “son of Manuel” and “son of Emanoell,” showing how close the surname was to its given-name source.
From the historical record
“Mantun. MANUEL for Immanuel : v. Emanuel. MAN US, V. Mac Manus. MANVILLE (Fr.-Lat.) Bel. to Manneville (Normandy) == the Great Estate [Lat. Magna Villa] Manneville, Calvados, occurs as Magna”
— Surnames of the United Kingdom: a concise etymological dictionary (2 vols in 1)