Roschelle
A feminine name derived from the rose, symbolizing beauty and grace.
Name Census estimates that about 172 living Americans carry the first name Roschelle. The name is used almost exclusively for girls. The average person named Roschelle today is around 54 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Roschelle births was 1969 (15 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Roschelle. 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.
People living today
172
~ 1 in 1,992,758 Americans
Peak year
1969
15 babies that year
Average age
54
years old
1991 SSA rank
#12,743
Tracked since 1959
Popularity
Roschelle: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Roschelle from the 1950s through to the 1990s, spanning 5 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1970s, with 77 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1970s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Roschelle 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 Roschelle during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Origin
Meaning and history of Roschelle
The name Roschelle is a variant of the French name Rochelle, which has its origins in the Old French word "rochel" meaning "little rock." This name was likely derived from the French city of La Rochelle, a seaport located on the Bay of Biscay in western France. The city's name is believed to come from the Old French "roche," meaning "rock," referring to the rocky promontory on which the city was built.
In the Middle Ages, La Rochelle was an important maritime center and a major port city in the region of Aunis. It played a significant role in the wine trade and was also known for its production of salt from the nearby marshes. The name Rochelle became associated with the city and its inhabitants, and it eventually spread as a given name across Europe.
One of the earliest recorded instances of the name Roschelle dates back to the 16th century. In 1570, a woman named Roschelle de Aubigne was born in France. She was the daughter of Théodore Agrippa d'Aubigné, a prominent French Protestant writer and soldier during the French Wars of Religion.
Another notable figure with the name Roschelle was Roschelle Landon (1900-1975), an American actress and dancer who performed on Broadway and in several Hollywood films during the 1920s and 1930s. She is best known for her roles in the films "The Vagabond King" (1930) and "The Cat and the Fiddle" (1934).
In the 18th century, Roschelle Levi (1742-1814) was a Jewish scholar and author from Germany. She was one of the first women to write and publish books on Jewish law and ethics, and her works were widely read and respected in her time.
During the 19th century, Roschelle Vaillant (1818-1892) was a French painter and sculptor known for her portraits and genre scenes. She studied under renowned artists such as Jean-Auguste-Dominique Ingres and exhibited her works at the prestigious Paris Salon.
In more recent times, Roschelle Woodson (born 1976) is an American actress and singer who has appeared in various television shows and films, including "Love Jones" (1997) and "Soul Food" (2000-2004).
While the name Roschelle is not as common today as it once was, it has a rich history and cultural significance, particularly in its connection to the French city of La Rochelle and its role in maritime trade and cultural exchange during the Middle Ages and Renaissance periods.
People
Roschelle + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Roschelle 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
Roschelle: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Roschelle?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 172 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Roschelle 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 1,992,758 US residents.
Is Roschelle a common name?
We classify Roschelle as "Very Rare". It ranks above 72.2% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 196 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Roschelle most popular?
The single biggest year for Roschelle was 1969, when 15 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Roschelle is about 54 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Roschelle a female name?
Yes, 100.0% of people registered as Roschelle 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.
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.