Frenkel is a surname. Notable people with the surname include:
Alexander Frenkel (born 1985), German boxer of Ukrainian origin
Daan Frenkel (born 1948), Dutch computational physicist
Danielle Frenkel (born 1987), Israeli high jumper
Edward Frenkel (born 1968), mathematician and filmmaker
Heinrich Frenkel (1860–1931), Swiss physician
Igor Frenkel (born 1952), Russian-American mathematician
Jacob A. Frenkel (born 1943), Israeli economist and businessman
James Frenkel (born 1948), American science fiction book editor
Naftali Frenkel, 16-year-old killed in the 2014 kidnapping and murder of Israeli teenagers
Naftaly Frenkel (1883–1960), Soviet official
Peter Frenkel (1939), East German race walker
Richard Frenkel (born 1966), patent lawyer, formerly with Cisco Systems
Rina Frenkel (born 1956), Israeli politician
Yakov Frenkel (1894–1952), Russian physicist, known for the Frenkel defect
Yan Frenkel (1920–1989), Soviet composer
Yitzhak Frenkel (1899–1981), Israeli painter
Hermann Frenkel (1850–1932), partner of the Jacquier and Securius Bank