Rosaline
A feminine name derived from the Latin rosa, meaning "rose".
Name Census estimates that about 1,815 living Americans carry the first name Rosaline. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Rosaline today is around 41 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rosaline births was 1928 (88 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rosaline. Below you will find a gender breakdown showing how the name splits between male and female registrations, a year-by-year popularity chart stretching back to 1880, decade-level totals, the top US states for this name, its meaning and etymology, and a set of frequently asked questions with data-backed answers.
For a British comparison, Name Census UK has a UK baby-name profile for Rosaline with official rankings and popularity over time.
People living today
1.8K
~ 1 in 188,845 Americans
Peak year
1928
88 babies that year
Average age
41
years old
2024 SSA rank
#3,000
Tracked since 1891
Census
Rosaline in the 2020 Census
The 2020 Census recorded 2,629 people with the first name Rosaline, which placed it at #6,164 in the published first-name tables. This is a snapshot of people who already had the name at the time of the Census.
The SSA sections elsewhere on this page answer a different question: how often parents gave the name to babies over time. The "people living today" figure on this page is different again: it is a current estimate built from SSA birth records and age-based survival rates, so the two numbers are not expected to match exactly.
2020 Census rank
#6,164
National first-name rank
People counted
2.6K
2,629 in the published race/origin table
Per 100,000
0.9
People with this name in 2020
Largest reported group
White
33.7% of people with this name
Demographics
Ancestry and ethnicity for Rosaline
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rosaline is White at 33.7%. The next largest groups are Black (29.4%) and Hispanic (18.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself.
The bar chart below shows how people with the first name Rosaline described their own race and ethnicity on the 2020 Census form. The Census Bureau groups responses into six broad categories: White, Black or African American, Hispanic or Latino, Asian and Pacific Islander, American Indian and Alaska Native, and Two or More Races. When a category has too few respondents for a given name, the Bureau suppresses the figure to protect individual privacy, which is why some names show fewer than six slices.
Percentages are shown so the breakdown is easy to read across every published category. Because the 2020 Census first-name file also includes raw headcounts for each group, Name Census can show those alongside the percentages in the legend and hover tooltip.
Keep in mind that these are self-reported numbers. A first name does not determine a person's race or ethnicity, and the distribution you see here reflects the specific population who happened to carry the name Rosaline at the time of the 2020 Census, not any inherent property of the name itself.
- White33.7% · 886
- Black or African American29.4% · 774
- Hispanic or Latino18.8% · 493
- Asian and Pacific Islander13.0% · 342
- Two or more races3.0% · 78
- American Indian and Alaska Native2.1% · 56
Popularity
Rosaline: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rosaline from the 1890s through to the 2020s, spanning 14 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1920s, with 754 total registrations. Although the numbers have come down from the 1920s peak, Rosaline remains solidly in use and shows no sign of disappearing from maternity wards.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rosaline by decade
The table below breaks the full SSA timeline into ten-year windows. Each row shows how many male and female babies were given the name Rosaline during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rosalines live
The SSA's state-level files cover 13 states and territories. New York, California, Pennsylvania recorded the most babies named Rosaline, while Arizona, Indiana, West Virginia recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 79 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rosaline
Rosaline is a feminine given name derived from the Latin rosa, meaning "rose." The name has its roots in the Roman era, when the rose was a symbol of beauty and love. It is often considered a variant of the name Rosalind, which has a similar origin and meaning.
The name Rosaline first gained popularity during the Middle Ages, particularly in France and England. It was often used as a name for girls born into noble families, as the rose was a symbol of aristocracy and refinement. In the late 12th century, the French poet Chrétien de Troyes referenced a character named Rosaline in his influential work, "Le Roman de la Rose."
One of the earliest recorded examples of the name Rosaline can be found in William Shakespeare's classic play, "Romeo and Juliet." In the play, Rosaline is the object of Romeo's initial infatuation before he meets and falls in love with Juliet. The name Rosaline has since been associated with the idea of unrequited love and the pursuit of unattainable desires.
Throughout history, several notable figures have borne the name Rosaline. Rosaline Zuren (1520-1594) was a Dutch poet and theologian known for her religious writings and contributions to the Protestant Reformation. Rosaline de Courtenay (1180-1233) was a French noblewoman and the wife of Peter of Brittany, a prominent figure during the Angevin period.
In the 18th century, Rosaline Duthe (1726-1806) was a French botanist and naturalist who made significant contributions to the study of plant life. Rosaline Morse (1831-1913) was an American educator and activist who fought for women's rights and the abolition of slavery.
Another notable figure was Rosaline Masson (1867-1947), a French sculptor and painter known for her works depicting female subjects. Her sculptures and paintings often portrayed women in various stages of life, celebrating their strength and resilience.
These historical figures, along with countless others throughout the centuries, have borne the name Rosaline, contributing to its enduring presence and significance in various cultures and societies.
People
Rosaline + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rosaline as the first name? Click a combination below to see the estimate, or search any pairing.
Related
Other names starting with R
Other first names starting with R with a similar number of bearers.
FAQ
Rosaline: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rosaline?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 1,815 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rosaline going back to 1880 and adjusting each cohort for expected survival using CDC actuarial life tables. The result is an age-weighted living-bearer count, not a raw birth total. That works out to about 1 in 188,845 US residents.
Is Rosaline a common name?
We classify Rosaline as "Rare". It ranks above 93.3% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 3,898 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rosaline most popular?
The single biggest year for Rosaline was 1928, when 88 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rosaline is about 41 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
How common was Rosaline in the 2020 Census?
The published 2020 Census first-name tables recorded 2,629 people with the name Rosaline, or 0.87 per 100,000 residents. That placed it at #6,164 in the national Census ranking for first names.
Why is the Census count different from the living estimate?
Because they measure different things. The Census figure is a count of people who had the name Rosaline in 2020. The living estimate aims to answer a current question instead: how many people with the name are alive today, based on SSA birth records and age-based survival rates. Since one number is a 2020 snapshot and the other is a present-day estimate, they are not expected to be identical.
What does the Census say about the gender split for Rosaline?
In the 2020 Census sex table, Rosaline appears almost entirely female. Of the 2,623 people counted with this name, 99.8% were female and only a very small share were male. The Census view is a snapshot of people living with the name in 2020, while the SSA section above tracks births across time.
What does the Census say about the background of people named Rosaline?
In the 2020 Census race and Hispanic-origin table, the largest reported group for people named Rosaline is White at 33.7%. The next largest groups are Black (29.4%) and Hispanic (18.8%). These figures describe the people who had the name in 2020, not any inherent property of the name itself. The percentages in the chart above come from self-reported race and Hispanic-origin responses in the 2020 Census.
Which group reports the name Rosaline most often in the Census?
White is the largest reported group for people named Rosaline in the 2020 Census, accounting for 33.7% (886 people in the published table).
Why can the Census sex total and race total differ slightly?
The Census Bureau published separate 2020 tables for sex and for race/Hispanic origin, and the released figures can differ slightly because of privacy protection in the public files. That is why this page treats the gender section and the race/origin section as two related snapshots instead of forcing them into one identical total.
Does every first name have Census demographic data?
No. The public Census first-name release only includes names that met the Bureau's publication rules, so many rarer names in the SSA files have no Census demographic snapshot. When that happens, the SSA trend, gender history, and state sections still appear, but the 2020 Census demographic sections are omitted.
What does the SSA popularity chart show?
The chart tracks births, not the number of people alive with the name today. Each point shows how many babies were given the name Rosaline in that year. That makes it useful for spotting when the name rose, peaked, or faded.
Is Rosaline a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Rosaline in the SSA data are female. You can see the full per-sex comparison in the gender distribution section above, which includes the latest year rank, birth count, and peak year for each sex.
Is Rosaline still being used today?
Yes. The SSA still recorded Rosaline in 2024, and the page above shows its latest-year rank where available. A name can be well past its peak and still remain in steady use, especially if it built up a large population over earlier decades.
Why can a name have a lot of living bearers even if it is not trendy now?
Because living-bearer counts and current baby-name popularity measure different things. A name like Rosaline can build up a very large population over many decades, even if fewer parents are choosing it now than they did at its peak.
Where does this data come from?
First-name figures come from the Social Security Administration's national baby name files, which cover every name on a birth certificate from 1880 to 2024. Living-bearer estimates layer in CDC actuarial life tables broken out by sex to account for mortality. The population baseline (342,754,338) is the Census Bureau's latest national estimate. You can read the full calculation on our methodology page.
How many people share the name Rosaline?
Want to know how many Americans are named Rosaline? HowManyOfMe.org, our sister site, puts the living-bearer count front and centre.