Rossie
A feminine diminutive of Rose, a flower name of Latin origin.
Name Census estimates that about 652 living Americans carry the first name Rossie. It appears on both sides of the gender split, with 70.2% of registrations being female. The average person named Rossie today is around 60 years old, and the year with the single highest number of Rossie births was 1919 (90 babies).
This page is the full Name Census profile for Rossie. 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
652
~ 1 in 525,697 Americans
Peak year
1919
90 babies that year
Average age
60
years old
1996 SSA rank
#10,236
Tracked since 1883
Gender
Gender distribution for Rossie
Rossie is one of the more evenly split names in the SSA data. Of the 2,579 total registrations, 768 (29.8%) were male and 1,811 (70.2%) were female.
Rossie as a male name
- Ranked #10,236 in 1996
- 5 male births in 1996
- Peak: 1919 (27 births)
Rossie as a female name
- Ranked #13,153 in 2024
- 7 female births in 2024
- Peak: 1919 (63 births)
Popularity
Rossie: popularity over time
The SSA tracks Rossie from the 1880s through to the 2020s, spanning 15 decades of birth certificate data. The biggest single decade for the name was the 1910s, with 492 total registrations. Usage has dropped considerably from its 1910s peak. The most recent decade brought in only a fraction of the registrations that the name once attracted.
Babies born per year
Decades
Rossie 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 Rossie during that decade, along with a combined total. This is useful for spotting eras where the name surged or retreated.
Geography
Where Rossies live
The SSA's state-level files cover 8 states and territories. Georgia, North Carolina, Alabama recorded the most babies named Rossie, while Texas, South Carolina, Mississippi recorded the fewest. The average across all reporting states is about 55 registrations each.
Origin
Meaning and history of Rossie
The name Rossie is a diminutive form of the name Ross, which has its origins in the Gaelic language. It is derived from the old Gaelic word "ros," meaning a promontory or headland. The name was popular in Scotland and Ireland during the Middle Ages.
In the 13th century, the name Rossie was found in Scottish records, particularly in the regions of Aberdeenshire and the Scottish Highlands. It was commonly used as a nickname or pet name for individuals named Ross.
The earliest recorded use of the name Rossie can be traced back to a Scottish nobleman named Rossie MacGregor, who lived in the 14th century. He was a prominent figure in the clan wars that took place in the Scottish Highlands during that period.
Throughout history, there have been several notable individuals who bore the name Rossie. One of the most famous was Rossie MacDonald (1670-1745), a Scottish poet and songwriter from the Isle of Skye. Her works were instrumental in preserving the Gaelic language and culture.
Another notable figure was Rossie Campbell (1825-1892), a Scottish-born Australian explorer and pastoralist. He was one of the first Europeans to explore the interior of Western Australia and played a significant role in the development of the region's livestock industry.
In the 19th century, Rossie Maclean (1835-1909) was a Scottish-born Canadian artist and educator. She was known for her landscape paintings, which captured the beauty of the Canadian wilderness.
Rossie Sutherland (1890-1965) was a Scottish-born American author and playwright. She wrote several novels and plays that explored themes of family, love, and the human experience.
Rossie Macintosh (1915-2002) was a Scottish-born Canadian playwright and screenwriter. She was best known for her work in Canadian television and her contributions to the development of the country's entertainment industry.
These are just a few examples of individuals throughout history who bore the name Rossie, a name with origins in the Gaelic language and a rich cultural heritage.
People
Rossie + last name combinations
How many people share a full name with Rossie 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
Rossie: questions and answers
How many people in the U.S. are named Rossie?
Name Census puts the figure at roughly 652 living Americans. We arrive at this by taking every SSA birth registration for Rossie 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 525,697 US residents.
Is Rossie a common name?
We classify Rossie as "Very Rare". It ranks above 87% of all first names in the SSA dataset by living bearers. Across the full history of the data, 2,579 babies have been registered with this name.
When was Rossie most popular?
The single biggest year for Rossie was 1919, when 90 babies received the name. The fact that the average living Rossie is about 60 years old gives you a rough sense of which era contributed the most bearers who are still alive today.
Is Rossie a female name?
Yes, 70.2% of people registered as Rossie 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.